Once Smitten, Twice Skele-Shy
by Sweetn'Fluffy
Summary: (I'm probably going to rewrite this story! Just letting you know!) You are a very shy individual suffering from social anxiety. However, your bonely life takes a turn for the better when you meet an unlikely friend: a dorky skeleton with a big heart. This is primarily a Papyrus and Shy!Reader story. Please be gentle, since this is my first fanfic. Cover by Ravyn-Karasu on DA.
1. A Skeleton In the Supermarket?

**Note: *This story is going to be rewritten due to some errors that I spotted. Please keep this in mind. I won't be updating this story anymore until I make the second draft, then I'll be able to move on from there. The story will continue though with the same plot, and will be twice as better once I'm finished editing some things. Thank you! :) ***

You were not the type who enjoyed crowded places. In fact, you would rather be home reading a book, snuggled up in the comforting warmth of blankets. Groceries did not grow on trees though, so you had to muster up some determination and head to the store. The supermarket you went to was an integrated one, allowing both monsters and humans to shop there. Even though monsters returned to the surface less than a decade ago, humans still held quite a grudge against them. Some places were segregated, not even allowing monsters near the area. You lived in a neighborhood that was generally accepting of monsters, so it was quite common to see them around.

There were a lot more humans than monsters in the store, of course, but you did see some slime monsters, fire monsters, goat monsters…and a little white dog running about, annoying shoppers. Your social anxiety did not discriminate though. You feared your own kind just as much as you feared monsters. It was a curse that never let you be. A mischievous shadow that stalked you from every corner. The boogie man in your brain, rather than under your bed.

(Let's just make this quick.)

You whispered to yourself like a mantra. The feeling of intense dread was already in your gut. Your palms were beginning to sweat, and your face began to boil. No one around you noticed your oncoming panic attack, but to you, it felt like everyone was staring. What if they notice your shallow breathing? What if they point and laugh? What if someone is judging? No, stop letting the thoughts take over. Remaining calm was absolutely necessary, since a panic attack in a public place would be humiliating. Putting a hand to your chest, you took a few deep breaths.

Stay calm, stay calm, you repeated to yourself. Eventually, the oncoming panic attack settled, but it was still there within the pit of your stomach. Its claws digging into you from the inside, wanting to escape.

Trying to take your mind of the nausea, you browsed the produce section. There was a recipe you had in mind to make that required vegetables. You needed some broccoli, and luckily, no one was standing there. With your shopping cart, you sheepishly walked your way towards the broccoli section. Big mistake. Someone wheeled their cart right in front of yours, taking your spot, rather impolitely as well. You did not want to talk to the person, who was rather large, and also sported an unfriendly scowl. Dinner did not make itself, so facing your fears was the only option at this point.

"E-e-excuse…m-me?" You managed to squeak, but your voice was too soft.

The person either did not hear what you said, or just flat-out ignored you.

A feeling of intense dread washed over you. Did you say something wrong?

Maybe speaking was not the best option, you thought, so you just waited until the person left.

You wondered what you had possibly done to upset them. Again, the claws in your stomach began to jab you, but you tried your best to ignore them. The burning in your face was back, stronger than ever, but you stood determined. You grabbed the freshest crowns of broccoli, weighed them, then got right out of there.

(I sure hope I don't have anymore moments like that.)

You thought to yourself, but normally, something goes wrong. That is just what happens to the protagonist in almost every story. Of course, you did not know what the future had planned for you. Something out there was growing tired of the boring details. They wanted the real fun to begin. You were unsure why the universe had a bone to pick with you, but protagonists all go through it.

(I should get some pasta. Every household needs that.)

With your cart, you headed toward the pasta aisle, but completely halted upon seeing an unusual sight. Your heart was jumping a mile as you saw what appeared to be a giant skeleton. That seemed completely bizarre. Why would a skeleton be at a supermarket of all places? It was not like they needed food to survive. They did not even have internal organs, nor a stomach to digest. Then again, when did anything ever make sense anymore? The existence of monsters was just as unusual.

(Deep breath. Deep breath. Maybe it will ignore me?)

Though your brain kept screaming "no" and your nausea was relentless, you somehow managed to get up close to the skeleton. You felt your knees beginning to wobble like jelly, but curse natural human curiosity. Why must it be so natural for you to want to inspect things? It was like you were some type of protagonist of a video game.

Your eyes began to fixate on the anatomically inaccurate skeleton next to you. It was intimidating being next to him, since he was much taller than you. What he was wearing completely baffled you though. Were those basketballs on his shoulders? You did not leave the house very much, but that did not seem like a normal part of fashion. Those briefs and the backwards hat also gave off an…old school vibe…maybe? This skeleton guy was quite interesting, but you were still greatly unnerved. You reached out for a box of lasagna noodles, praying to not be seen.

(Don't notice me….please...act like I'm not her-)

Suddenly, you heard a boisterous voice from next to you.

You jumped, dropping the lasagna in the process. Some of the noodles inside cracked, but that was the least of your worries now.

"GREETINGS, HUMAN! I SEE YOU ARE A FELLOW PASTA LOVER AS WELL!"

You were frozen with fear as the blood rushed so fast in your veins, all the way to your head. The room around you began to spin, and your breath began to become strained. It was freezing in the supermarket, but the anxiety that overtook you raised your temperature. It was surprising that you did not catch fire. Your knees were wobbling, knocking into each other as they did so. It was over. The nausea was beginning to double, but you kept breathing to keep from getting ill.

The two of you did not make eye contact, though you could feel him looking down upon you.

Wait…how was that even possible? Do skeletons have eyes? You did not want to know the answer to that either way.

"UMMM, ARE…YOU ALRIGHT, HUMAN?! ARE YOU FEELING UNWELL?! THE GREAT PAPYRUS WOULD BE DELIGHTED TO HELP A MEMBER OF ANOTHER SPECIES, FOR I AM THAT GREAT!"

You did not enjoy hearing loud noises, especially when in the middle of a panic attack. His voice was rather silly-sounding, but in the state you were in, it was jarring. You wanted to start pulling on your hair, but stopped yourself. You felt that you were already a freak, so why heighten the situation? Besides, hair-pulling is not the best calming technique.

"I-I-I...I'm…." You spoke softly, though the skeleton, Papyrus, struggled to hear you.

"WHAT WAS THAT, HUMAN?! COULD YOU SPEAK UP A LITTLE?!"

He responded, cupping a hand to his nonexistent ear and leaning closer to you.

You tried one more time, trying to gaze into his eye sockets. He appeared to be quite kind, though it was difficult for you to tell how he was feeling. It is kind of hard, considering that his face is always fixed into a grin. Eyes may be the windows to a person's soul…but what if said person had no eyes, and was a skeleton? Your thoughts were running wildly, until you felt something stroke your head lightly. Every muscle in your body tightened, but it strangely felt...pleasant?

(D-Did…he just pet me?)

Your face flushed at the realization. Hoping to hide it, you pulled your scarf over your cheeks, then focused on the floor. Papyrus must have noticed this, since you heard his hearty laugh ring in your ears. Was he laughing at you…or did he think this was cute? Curiosity got the best of you again. Peering up at the skeleton, you saw his eye sockets sparkling a little. You analyzed his features carefully, and oddly enough, they were starting to look familiar to you. It was difficult to understand what you were feeling, but the skeleton standing before you felt oddly…like an old friend. You tried brushing it off, thinking that the notion was absolutely ridiculous. It was not like you met living skeletons on a daily basis, so what would be the chances of him looking familiar to you?

"AH, THERE YOU ARE! NYEH HEH HEH, I FOUND YOUR FACE, HUMAN!"

Papyrus raised his fist into the air with much vigor. It was hard to not let a giggle escape from your lips, for the sight was too cute. Never in your entire life did you expect to think that of a skeleton, of all things, but Papyrus was as endearing as a puppy. Being near this skeleton initially heightened your anxiety, but for some reason, you were beginning to feel a lot calmer than before.

For once in what felt like an eternity, you smiled at him. It was only a little smirk, but better than nothing.

Papyrus smiled at you back with closed eye sockets. His ivory, chiseled cheeks were colored a light orange. Was this the start of a new friendship? You were too bashful to ask, though it would be a shame to lose someone this kind. Of course, you were still slightly unsure of him, but taking a chance will not kill you, right? Once again, your thoughts swept you away from the present. Someone poked you on the top of your head, snapping you back into reality. In front of you was a sticky note with a phone number. Your shaky hand reached to take it, but Papyrus, for some reason, stuck it on your forehead.

"HUMAN, THOUGH YOU DO NOT SPEAK VERY MUCH, I THINK WE WILL MAKE GREAT FRIENDS!" He yelled. He was so full of enthusiasm and energy, that you felt yourself absorbing some of it. After what you had been through, it was very much needed.

You nodded, though there was only one problem. Anxiety was an unrelenting beast, and you were a home body. Texting and phone calls were difficult, but you were determined to see this gentle skeleton man again. He petted you for the second time, causing you to become flustered.

You did not necessarily dislike touch, but you reserved it for close friends and family. Papyrus giggled again at your response, seeming like he was enjoying himself. He turned around with his carriage, walking with a sassy strut as he left the aisle, leaving you in shock and confusion.

Something about the whole situation felt familiar to you, but again, you chalked it up to your imagination and decided to forget about. There was one problem though…you could not. That meeting, the skeleton, even the dialogue felt like something you had experienced at one point before. You sighed, rubbing your head, which was no throbbing due to a headache. The sticky note the skeleton monster stuck on your forehead was still there, so you pulled it off, looking at the number.

(I guess I'll keep this then.)

You thought, folding up the yellow sticky note before tucking it away in the pocket of your pants. Trying to forget everything that had happened today, you decided to leave the pasta aisle and check out.

Little did you know that a long adventure awaited you, and that this was the very beginning.


	2. A Skele-ton of Fun

(I'm surrounded, I can't escape.)

It was the same thing yet again; they circled around you, blocking any chance of escape. They were laughing at you, some pointing their fingers mockingly. Their faces were obscure, but their malicious glares pierced through the darkness. Little daggers were pointing your way, digging into the very fabric of your being. What did they want? Why did this always happen? There were many questions, but no answers.

They were speaking, though in a different, cryptic language. Even if they were speaking in a language familiar to you, the robotic-like static blocked out most of their dialogue. The message was quite clear though; these creatures were far from benevolent.

(Go away…please.)

You begged, tears soaking your face. It seemed that the figures took delight in this, for their laughter became louder. Covering your ears had little effect, since it seemed their voices leaked through your fingers. Clutching your hair, you called for help.

…But no one came…

Suddenly, the figures quickly turned their heads away. Judging by their body language, something had startled them. They evaporated into nothingness, vanishing as if they were never there. Assuming the worse, you buried your head into your knees, praying that nothing else would come.

(Huh, what was that?)

A finger had brushed you lightly on the shoulder. It was not the dangerous claws you were expecting at all. What could possibly touch this softly? You swallowed hard, but gathered the courage to look your possible savior in the face. It was the eccentric skeleton man you met in the pasta aisle the other day. He was kneeled over next to you, providing comfort and security. There was a white aura around him, giving him a serene appearance. He opened his mouth, about to whisper something…

BEEP BEEP BEEP!

Curse that annoying alarm clock! Its horrendous beeping jolted you out of slumber, just when the dream was getting to the good parts. Wait, no, not those good parts. The possibility of befriending a skeleton was enough for you, never mind boning one, especially not one as innocent as him. Where did that dream even come from? You literally just met him the other day, and now he was in your dreams? Things were getting very weird and you were genuinely freaked out by your own brain.

An uncovered yawn escaped your lips while you rubbed the sand out of your eyes. You picked up the still beeping alarm clock next to the bed. Revenge was tempting, but tossing it across the room did not seem like the best idea. Sighing, you turned the alarm clock off.

It was around 9:30 am in the morning on Monday. Groggily, you got yourself out of bed, hoping to leave the nightmares behind. They were a common occurrence in the dream world as well as outside of it. This dream was a bit different from all the others ones. What was he doing in there, and what was he trying to say to you?

Then it hit you: he gave you his phone number! The sticky note with the number was right on the table next to your bedside. Written was his name in all capital letters, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, and a smiley face underneath his number. You smiled for the second time in awhile. If only you were brave enough to text him. It still made you very nervous to communicate with others, but maybe it was worth a try? Papyrus showed you nothing but kindness, and though he had a massive ego, his metaphorical heart was the size of the galaxy.

Just as you were about to text him, your stomach growled. Breakfast was not the most important thing on your mind, so cereal will have to do. Who needs breakfast when that sticky note was priority? After eating, you grabbed your phone, adding in Papyrus's number. This was it. He was going to enter your life again. So many misadventures awaited.

You prepared to send a text message to Papyrus:

"Hello, Papyrus. This is the human you met the other day in the pasta aisle. Would you like to hang out sometime?"

Your finger was right on the "send" button before it happened.

…Oh no…there it is again!

The anxiety was beginning to settle in your stomach. That familiar feeling was taking ahold of you, but after that dream, you were filled with determination. Papyrus was going to be your friend, no matter what the anxiety said. The phone shook in your hands as you mentally struggled with the panic attack. There was no way it would take away the opportunity to make a friend. Humans are determined creatures; you were no different.

(JUST DO IT!)

Facing your eyes away from the screen, you pressed the send button. Your heart sunk, but a part of you was also relieved.

It did not take long for a notification to pop up on the screen with his name. After thirty minutes of panicking, you decided to open it.

WHY OF COURSE! : DDDD THE GREAT PAPYRUS WILL COME OVER AND MAKE YOU SOME OF HIS FAMOUS SPAGHETTI! ; )

His writing was just like his speech: bombastic, exuberant, and shamelessly confident. It seemed that he also loved abusing the emoji button.

You've defeated the text message! Silent protagonist gained 1000 exp. points. Silent protagonist leveled up! Social experience increases by 2! Confidence increase by 2!

If life was an RPG, then this was like defeating a mid-boss. Now you had to deal with the stronger boss, anxiety. What kind of hobbies did skeletons have? Did you have enough HP to manage? Why are you even treating this like an RPG? Someone needs to take a break from video games.

You gripped your phone tightly with both hands, so hard that it hurt.

"What made me think this was a good idea? I can't have someone I just met come over my house! Have I lost my mind?" You cursed aloud to yourself, clutching your head. It had been awhile since anyone visited your apartment, but there was no backing out of this now. Papyrus was expecting the friend date; the least you could do was not disappoint him.

Bing!

Another notification from Papyrus. The blood was pumping so fast in your body, that your heart felt like it was about to burst. Taking a deep breath, you opened the text.

CARE TO PROVIDE YOUR ADDRESS, HUMAN?

Without any thought, you texted him your address just like that. Though this sounded cliché to you, butterflies were in your stomach, stronger than ever. The pasta loving skeleton was coming to your own home. This friendship escalated much quicker than expected…perhaps a little too quickly, which made you worry slightly. However, this did not feel like you were having some random stranger to your home. This skeleton felt like an old best friend, though you just could not remember him. Everything was starting to become confusing to you.

Bing!

Yet another text from Papyrus. It sure did not take him very long to respond. He was quite an eager fellow, after all.

GOODIE! I WILL BE THERE SHORTLY, FOR I HAVE THE MOST MAGNIFICENT TIMING! : DDDD

Your mouth almost hit the floor. How could you possibly prepare for something like this?

(Ahhhh! Right now? I haven't even showered yet! I can't have him seeing me like this!)

You gazed at yourself in the bedroom mirror. If beauty sleep is a real, then this was a messy awakening. Your hair looked like it got shocked by lightning, then a bird decided to make a home out of it. It was so knotted and tangled, that even a comb would run away from the beast. Tossing and turning from the nightmares did not do wonders for your appearance. Your face was sweaty and oily as well. Rinsing would not be enough, so you took a towel from the bathroom and prepared to shower.

A half an hour later, there was a knock at the door. Judging by how much energy was put into it, there was no mystery as to who it was. You took a deep breath before opening the door. What happened next took the breath out of you, quite literally. Before it was even possible to react, something large swooped you off your feet. A little squeak instantly escaped you. Papyrus had picked you up, squeezing you tightly into his boney chest. Your face tingled upon meeting eye-to-eye socket.

"GREETINGS ONCE AGAIN, HUMAN! I HOPE YOU ARE PREPARED FOR THE COOLEST HANG OUT EVER!" The tall skeleton exclaimed. For some unexplainable reason, Papyrus emanated warmth, despite his lack of skin and muscles. It was wrong to underestimate his sheer strength just because of his slim body structure. After a few long minutes of hugging, he gently put you down. Your limbs felt like overcooked spaghetti, so you nearly stumbled over before Papyrus caught you.

"H-hello…Papyrus," You shyly muttered, hands covering your face.

"T-t-there's not much to do here, b-but make yourself at home."

The skeleton giggled with pure joy as he stepped into your home.

"WOWIE! WHAT A NICE PLACE YOU HAVE!"

Though it was not much, he seemed to enjoy your small, boring apartment. There was nothing interesting to do in such a humble living space, but just seeing Papyrus acting giddy made you warm inside. It took you a moment to realize that this was your first time speaking to him normally. You still stuttered some, but at least you managed to converse with him.

"I HAVE SO MANY IDEAS FOR OUR HANG OUT! TAKE A LOOK!"

You had not noticed it before, but he was holding some bags. One was a shopping bag full of boxes of spaghetti, while the other had board games, movies, and puzzles. It made you happy that he brought things to do, since you had no idea what skeletons liked. Being a host/hostess was not an ideal role for you, so Papyrus was the best lead.

"W-what will we do first?" You asked, your voice getting slightly stronger.

Papyrus clasped his hands together, his eye sockets sparkling inside.

"GOOD QUESTION, HUMAN! WE MAKE SPAGHETTI, OF COURSE!"

You remembered Papyrus saying something about pasta. In fact, you remembered him walking off with a whole cart of spaghetti at the store. It seemed that he was some spaghetti fanatic. Spaghetti had always been a classic dish.

"O-okay, let's get some water bo-ah!"

Papyrus grabbed ahold of your hand, leading you to the kitchen (almost tripping over some things on the way). Where exactly did this skeleton get all of his energy? It seemed that he was perpetually hyper. If only you could have some of those vibes for yourself.

He looked through your cabinets, pulling out random pots and pans. They made loud clashing sounds as the stainless steel struck against each other. You stepped aside, letting the chef passionately perform his art. A long, boney arm pulled you back into the kitchen before you could go any farther. Papyrus wanted you by his side, and was persistent about keeping you there.

"WHY ARE YOU STEPPING AWAY? COME, HUMAN! LET THE MASTER CHEF PAPYRUS TEACH YOU THE WONDER THAT IS SPAGHETTI!"

He posed triumphantly with a pan in his hand, looking like a knight about to save a princess. The smug, confident expression he wore made him look charming, albeit in an odd way. Wait, was that a pink, frilly apron he was wearing? You did not remember owning an apron like that. A giggle bubbled between your lips, but you managed to stifle it before Papyrus noticed. The apron did suit his personality rather accurately, and it just made him much more adorable.

When the water began to rapidly bubble, you took a box of spaghetti from the shopping bag and poured its contents into the pot. Papyrus worked on his "special sauce" while you timed the noodles for about eight minutes. You were about to take a strainer out from under the sink until you smelled something off. The heat was rather high. If you did not turn it down, Papyrus's "special sauce" would be ruined. It was beginning to bubble quite a lot, but you were too nervous to say anything. You looked at the tall skeleton, who was humming, or "nyehing", a catchy pop song.

"HMMMM?" Papyrus, who was in the middle of chopping basil, looked down at you. One of his skeleton eyebrows were raised, and his head was canted to the side.

"SOMETHING WRONG, HUMAN?" He asked, proceeding to chop basil without looking.

"Uh, i-is that normal?" You asked, frantically pointing at the saucepan. One enormous bubble was rising from the saucepan, threatening to burst.

"NYEEEEHHH?!" Papyrus seemed to become concerned himself. The bubble only continued to grow, reaching its popping point.

"Q-quick! We should turn i-"

Too late! The bubble bursts, splattering both you and Papyrus with sauce. How it managed to grow to such a large size and dirty you two was beyond logical comprehension. You both slowly turned to looked at each other, flabbergasted.

Simultaneously, you two broke out into laughter.

After cleaning up the kitchen mess as well as yourselves, you and Papyrus sat down on the couch. There were many interesting stations playing, but one of them caught your attention the most. You stopped flicking through the channels for a second to see a pop band consisting of two humans, two monsters. They were the first interspecies band to ever form, making the charts regularly. Seeing them perform on stage together, regardless of their species, made you feel…hope. You looked at Papyrus, who had his gaze fixated upon you. No one outside your neighborhood would accept you if they knew about your forbidden friendship. Your college would consider you an outcast if they knew about Papyrus. Even though the thought made you anxious, you were determined.

"Human…." Papyrus began, his facial expression soft and sweet. His voice was a little quieter than usual, which was uncharacteristic of him.

You nodded your head, smiling wider than you ever had.

"I am happy that you are my friend." He finished, a light orange dusted his cheekbones.

Without resistance, you allowed the skeleton to pull you into his arms.


	3. Chilled to the Bone

Morning classes were always terribly slow, but today was just agonizing. Near the window, you were beginning to nod off as the professor drawled on. This class was never your favorite, and the monotone voice of your instructor did not help matters. It was unfortunate that you woke up late, having no time to brew some coffee. You were much more exhausted then usual, since you were stuck walking to college.

(Come on, come on! Be over already!)

The clock's hands were ticking very slowly. Considering how tired you were, class was no longer your priority at the moment. Your mind was elsewhere entirely, detached from the environment. The skeleton had entered your thoughts once again. It was impossible to stop the thoughts from taking up most of your day. You thought about when you first meant him, his goofy smile, his eccentric attire, the warmness of his hugs, the time you both spent together, everything. It took you a second to realize that your face was reddening, and you were grinning widely.

"Do you find what I'm teaching to be that amusing?"

You popped your head up, flinching at the frustrated gaze of your professor. She was tapping her foot with a hand to her hip. The spotlight was now on you for the third time this week. Everyone's hot gazes were crawling on your back.

"N-no, ma'am." You whispered, hanging your head in shame. If only you could fade away at that moment. It was not fair that everything seemed to happen to you. The professor seemed to have a bone to pick with you, since she targeted you every time exclusively. She turned her back away, starting her lecture from where she left off. After what felt like over an hour more of hell dealing with a panic attack, class was final dismissed.

(First my car broke down this morning. Then I got busted by the professor for daydreaming.  
Could today possibly get any worse?)

Since you had no friends to pick you up, it took forty-five minutes to get back to your neighborhood. While taking a secret short cut through the gate, you felt an odd sensation down your spine. It seemed that someone was following closely behind, but how did they manage to stalk you this whole time? Though an unwise option, you turned around to see who, or what, was following you. Nothing was there. Were you beginning to imagine things? A tired brain did not function at its maximum capacity, but you were sure someone was there. Brushing it off as paranoia, you started walking again.

The same sensation in your spine came back, but it was much stronger. At that point, your breathing became shorter and faster. Primal instincts were beginning to take over, preparing for fight-or-flight. Adrenaline pumped through your veins, providing you with a mass amount of energy. There was no doubt about it: someone was behind you, possibly a murderer.

(I have to get out of here!)

You began sprinting, dropping your heavy book bag to keep it from weighing you down. The person or thing followed so closely behind you, that running did not provide any kind of distance.

(Oh my god, just get away from me!)

You wanted to scream at the potential threat, but your lungs were burning already. By the time you made it to your apartment door, your mouth had an unpleasant, metallic taste.

(Wait…my keys were in that bag!)

The sudden realization made your soul turn blue. Tears began welling up in your eyes, and your whole body tremored violently. You thought today could not get any worse, but it did. Now you were stuck sleeping in the hallway. Worst of all, that thing or person knew where you lived. You were thinking to call Papyrus, but all your possessions were left behind. What were you possibly going to do now?

"hey, you dropped somethin'" A deep voice from behind you said.

Turning around, you gasped in terror. There was a short, stocky skeleton looking at you. He wore casual-looking clothing: a blue jacket with black basketball shorts and pink house slippers. In his eye sockets were two, white specks, appearing to be the skeleton equivalent of eyes. He also had a huge, Cheshire Cat-like grin spread across his face. His jacket was open, revealing a white t-shirt. He was holding on to your backpack, extending an arm to you. Too scared out or your wits to utter any words, you collapsed, sobbing. This appeared to startle the small skeleton. The large grin on his face somehow turned into a frown.

"you…okay kiddo?" He asked, a hint of concern in his voice. Somehow, his voice and appearance were oddly familiar to you, though you had no idea why. At that moment, you did not even care to know why. You were too terrified to question anything.

"SANS!"

A familiar voice boomed through the hallway. The skeleton, Sans, turned his head, his expression changing back into a large grin. It did not take long for Papyrus to stomp his way over.

"NYEH, LAZY BONES! ARE YOU SLACKING OFF AGAIN? HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE T-OH…."

Papyrus noticed you, practically curled up into a ball. He kneeled over to you, petting your shoulder lightly.

"HUMAN? DID SOMETHING HAPPEN?" Papyrus asked, wiping away your tears. This was enough to calm you down some.

"i think i might have…spooked them to the bone." Sans said, scratching the back of his head.

Papyrus scowled at the smaller skeleton, who responded by snickering. The taller skeleton appeared to be close to having a tantrum.

"SANS! THIS IS NOT A GOOD TIME FOR YOUR PUNS!" He yelled, though his voice sounded harsher than normal. Judging by their interaction with each other, it seemed like they were related. You found it amusing how different they were from each other.

"c'mon, bro. you know i tickle your…funny bone. don't you find me…humerus?"

The puns themselves were rather terrible, but Papyrus's reactions made you giggle uncontrollably. He was stomping his foot like a little child would.

"HONESTLY SANS, THIS IS GETTING OLD! YOU ARE WEARING MY PATIENCE THIN!"

Sans began chuckling, barely trying to stifle it with his boney hands.

"but bro, you can't wear patience." Sans responded, winking at you.

Both you and Sans were laughing at Papyrus's reactions. You could definitely tell they were brothers, but found it difficult to tell who was the eldest. They were an interesting pair, that was for certain.

"W-what are you two doing here?" You managed to ask, shyly.

Papyrus twiddled his fingers, looking into your eyes. It seemed that he was acting…bashful? For someone as confident as him, this was unusual. You two did hang out with each other recently. Maybe he felt like he came by uninvited…but Papyrus did not seem like the type to feel shame. Looking at Sans, you saw that he was snickering, muffling it with his shirt.

"UMMM, I WOULD LIKE TO TAKE YOU SKATING! I HAVE SEEN IT ON TV BEFORE! WHAT DO YOU SAY, HUMAN?!"

Papyrus had his hands clasped together, looking at you with puppy dog eyes. You were not sure how well you would be at skating, but the pleading expression he made prevented you from declining. He squealed with delight when you agreed to his idea, pulling you into a tight, boney hug. Sans stared at the two of you, his smile widening even more than you thought possible. You were still weary of him, but since he was Papyrus's brother, you hoped to get along.

"HERE WE ARE!" Papyrus shouted. It was a large, frozen lake rather than a skating ring. You recognized this lake while walking home from college. It was not very far from your neighborhood, so the walk was short. The scarf, coat, and hat kept you warm all the way. Papyrus was insistent that you bundled up, since he feared you catching a cold. There were other monsters and humans skating, but having Papyrus by your side made you much less nervous.

You and Papyrus put on your skates. Surprisingly, they still fit perfectly after a few years. The only time you ever skated was when you were still in high school, but you did not qualify as an expert. Papyrus must have been a beginner as well, you assumed.

"sorry guys, my break is over. gotta get to work." Sans said, setting up what appeared to be a hot dog stand in the snow. He fell asleep standing up not long after, much to the chagrin of Papyrus. The taller skeleton sighed, shaking his head in disapproval.

"MY LAZY BROTHER WILL NEVER CHANGE! HE ALWAYS SLEEPS DURING THE JOB! HE IS LUCKY TO HAVE SUCH A COOL BROTHER LIKE ME, THE GREAT PAPYRUS!"

You giggled, Papyrus chimed in.

Papyrus held you by both hands, helping you on to the ice. You gripped on to his gloves tightly, not wanting to let go under any circumstance. It seemed that he was already familiar with skating, since he leads you around with the utmost of ease.

"H-have you done this before?" You asked.

"WHY, YES! BACK IN SNOWDIN, THERE WAS A LOT OF ICE! IT WAS QUITE FUN TO SLIDE AROUND ON IT!"

(Snowdin? Why does that name sound so familiar?)

"SANS AND I USED TO LIVE THERE IN THE UNDERGROUND! I WAS QUITE POPULAR BACK THEN…NOT LIKE I AM NOT NOW!"

(It's a place in the underground? That's rather odd…)

"HUMAN! CARE TO DANCE WITH ME?!" Papyrus asked, his face blushing orange.

Your face flushed at the question, but you could not deny any request from Papyrus. Dancing on ice did not sound very easy, but if Papyrus was into it, then you were too. Hopefully he did not decide to try any advanced stunts, or you were possibly going to get some bones broken.

You and Papyrus waltzed on the ice, with him taking the lead. Your fingers were intertwined with his, and his hand was on your waist. You were not expecting a skeleton like Papyrus to know so much about dancing. The saying must be true; you cannot judge a book by its cover.

While dancing, a light snow began to fall. Being the child at heart he was, Papyrus caught a snowflake with his orange, ectoplasm tongue. You remember doing something similar when you were a kid. Seeing Papyrus laugh and smile made you feel, joyous. Most adults lose their inner child once their façade about the world breaks. They become hardened by the bitter elements of life. You decided to not become that way, no matter how bad things got.

Suddenly, a snowball hit the back of Papyrus's head. His shoulders tensed up upon impact. You leaned over to look behind him. Sans was doubled over, laughing so hard, that he fell onto the snow.

"SANS!" Papyrus clenched his hands, but still did not let go of yours. He stared down his brother, but Sans did not have a care in the world.

"what's wrong bro? you should really…chill out." Sans could barely speak, complaining that he could not breathe. You highly doubted that skeletons had lungs or any internal organs for that matter. Then again, Papyrus did have an orange tongue. From now on, magic would be your only explanation.

"YOU HAVE DONE IT NOW, BROTHER! DO NOT THINK I WILL GO EASY ON YOU! COME, HUMAN!" Papyrus pulled your arm, taking you onto the snow. He hastily took of his skates, putting his boots back on. He ended up putting each boot on the wrong foot.

Grabbing some snow, he molded it into a perfect sphere. Soon enough, there was a snowball fight between you, Sans, and Papyrus. Each time Sans would throw a snowball at you, Papyrus would come to "save" you. Sans seemed to take all of the hits Papyrus threw at him, clearly letting him win.

"NYEH HEH HEH, NO ONE CAN DEFEAT THE GREAT PAPYRUS, FOR I AM TOO STRONG!"

Papyrus flexed his "muscles" with a prideful expression.

"well, bro, you are the coolest dude ever. snow wonder why you beat me." Sans chuckled at his own puns.

"OH MY GOD, SANS!" Papyrus stomped his foot on the snow, producing a "crunch" sound.

"you're smiling, you know."

"I KNOW, AND I HATE IT!" He was trying hard to not smile, but his face betrayed him.

Seeing the cute skeleton brothers and their brotherly love for each other filled you with determination.

The two skeleton brothers walked home with you. Papyrus begrudgingly carried his brother on his back, ranting on about how lazy Sans was. You did have a wonderful time with them, and was ready to sleep in your warm bed. That would not be happening for a long time when you noticed smoking rising in the air. Something had happened to some of the apartments in your neighborhood, including yours. They were completely engulfed in flames. A lot seemed to happen while you were gone. What exactly had happened though? Papyrus stared at you, appearing worried.

"HUMAN…IS THAT NOT YOUR HOME?!" He asked in a solemn voice, or as solemn as Papyrus could get.

You nodded your head. Papyrus furrowed his "brows".

"AHA!" He exclaimed. There was a brief, orange light in the darkness of his eye sockets.

"I HAVE AN EXCELLENT IDEA! WE WILL HAVE A SLEEPOVER!"

Sleeping over in a house with two skeletons? You hated being away from your familiar surroundings, but what other option was available. You took Papyrus's suggestion, grateful that he was there to help, even though it felt a little weird.

"GOOD! I WILL ENSURE THAT YOU ARE AS COMFORTABLE AS POSSIBLE! NYEH HEH HEH!"

It was relieving to finally have someone looking out for you. Someone who cared enough to take you into their home. You wanted to wrap your arm around Papyrus's, but pulled back, thinking it would be awkward. The skeleton abruptly snuck his arm between yours, giggling at your sheepishness. You and Papyrus walked to his house, arms locked the whole way.


	4. A Life Full of Sans

By the time you and the skeleton brothers made it to their house, you were beyond exhausted. All the events of the day had drained all the energy out of you. To make matters worse, your apartment was now gone, along with what was in it. Though that was upsetting, at least there was nothing too important there. You kept your wallet in your pockets, so your credit cards and license were safe. However, you desperately needed a job. How you would find one was beyond you, but it was best to not worry over that at the moment.

"WE HAPPEN TO HAVE A GUEST BEDROOM UPSTAIRS! SOMETIMES, UNDYNE OR FRISK WILL VISIT AND STAY HERE! MAKE YOURSELF AT HOME, FRIEND!" Papyrus shouted, giddily as always. He was bouncing up and down excitedly, eyes flickering orange.

You would have giggled at his anticipation, but your attention was elsewhere. Looking at the television, you saw a news report. The reporter was discussing the fire that happened earlier:

(At around 3:00pm, a fire started in one of the monster and human integrated neighborhoods. Many of the apartments were destroyed by the flames. There were approximately 20 monsters and 18 humans injured, though no fatalities were recorded. The perpetrator or perpetrators have not been found, but the police are investigating…)

Seeing the disaster on television made your heart almost drop to the floor. It made you grateful to Sans and Papyrus for taking you out, or else your life could have been in danger. While focusing on the television, someone's gaze was penetrating your soul. Turning to your left, you saw Sans, his eye sockets focusing on you intently. His gaze was so intense, that it made your body tremor.

"SANS! WHAT DID I TELL YOU ABOUT LEAVING THE TELEVISION ON? WERE YOU REALLY THAT LAZY!? SHEESH, I DO EVERYTHING AROUND HERE!" Papyrus yelled, taking the remote from the table and turning off the television.

"sorry, bro. tele me sooner next time." Sans joked, smiling widely. You suspected that Sans was never truly sorry for any of his actions. Papyrus seemed to be fuming; his eyes were popping out of his sockets as he stomped his feet and raised his fists wildly.

"SANS! OH MY GOD! THAT IS IT! I WILL BE UPSTAIRS PREPARING THE GUEST ROOM! BE ON YOUR BEST BEHAVIOR FOR OUR GUEST…AND NO MORE PUNS!" Before Sans could say another pun, Papyrus quickly bolted up the stairs, nearly tripping on a step.

You and Sans were now alone, which made the pit of your stomach turn. Sans nonchalantly shrugged his shoulders, pulling out what appeared to be a cigarette from his pocket. He put it to his mouth, then snapped his fingers. The blue magic he summoned lights the cigarette, much quicker than any lighter could. Puffing it a few times, he exhaled through his teeth.

The vibe that you got from him made your skin crawl all over. The state you were in was already terrible; panicking was the last thing your tired body needed. There was no need to look at him; his stare was powerful enough for your soul to feel. It felt very invasive, like he was viewing you in the nude. Wait, no, that brought an awful image in your head. It was best to never to think of that ever again for the purpose of preserving your sanity.

You decide to try and ignore him by observing the room. The house reflected the eccentric nature of the brothers quite well. The carpet was an orange and blue with a zig-zag pattern. There was a wooden coffee table next to an orange coach, completely covered in magazines. What took your interest the most was the X-rated magazine, "Play Bones", sitting in the middle of the large pile. The cover had an image of a skeleton monster girl with long, violet plasma hair. She was wearing a red pair of high heels while posing in a suggestive manner.

(I guess skeletons need entertainment too.)

Against the wall was a large, flat-screen television supported by a TV stand. In the TV stand's compartments were game systems, various videogames, and anime. You did not think the skeleton brothers would be into anime, though Papyrus was a bit of a dork.

Looking at the blue walls, there were a few picture frames of Papyrus with Sans. Judging by the pictures, they must have been taken back in their old hometown back underground. The brothers looked much younger in some of them. What took you by surprise was the tallest figure standing behind them. He was very faint, making it difficult to see him in the picture. The figure appeared to be a skeleton monster, just like Papyrus and Sans. His head was cracked, leading a trail down to his left eye. You assumed that it must have been because of some trauma or accident. He was wearing a turtle neck with long, black trench coat and black pants.

(Could he possibly be related to them?)

This got you thinking about the way skeleton families worked. Did skeletons even reproduce by natural means? Most monsters seemed to reproduce just like most living creatures, but how did monster skeleton anatomy work? Were Sans and Papyrus conceived, or created? There was an X-rated magazine on the coffee table, if that hinted at anything.

(Do skeletons even…)

"what're you thinking about?" Sans asked, breaking you out of your thoughts. He had been quite silent the whole time, that you forgot he was still there.

(Oh crap…)

Your chest tightened, feeling a familiar heat rise to your face. If he knew the thoughts running in your head, you would be mortified. Why were you even trying to figure out if skeletons…you felt that it was best to leave that question unfinished.

"U-ummm, i-i-i-it…" the words were stuck in your throat. You had an inkling that he knew what you had been thinking about. The thought made your knees almost cave in. Curiosity was going to give you a bad time if you kept this up.

"It's…nothing." you lied, but the small skeleton laughed. It was obvious that you had been fidgety, since you had been shuffling your feet nosily on the carpet the whole time.

"NYEH! GET OUT OF HERE YOU THIEVING CANINE! SHOO! SHOO!"

The voice of Papyrus was heard booming from upstairs in the guest room. The door swung open, revealing the infuriated skeleton clutching a broom, and a little white dog running away with a bone. The dog looked quite familiar to you for some odd reason, though there are many white dogs every where. To help out Papyrus, you opened the door, allowing the white dog to escape with its stolen treasure. Papyrus shook the broom angrily, stomping his feet.

"AND STAY OUT YOU FILTHY MUTT!" Papyrus yelled, slamming the door. A few picture frames shook, some looking like they were about to fall.

DOOT DOOT DOOT!

A trombone sounds throughout the room from upstairs. Wait, was there a third brother living here too?

"SANS! STOP PLAGUING MY LIFE WITH INCIDENTAL MUSIC, AGAIN!"

An overwhelming feeling of dread took ahold of you. The small skeleton that was next to you just a few minutes ago had disappeared. How exactly did he walk past you without triggering your attention? There was much more to Sans and Papyrus than you had previously expected. It was best not to poke your nose into their business.

"COME HUMAN! I WILL ESCORT YOU TO YOUR ROOM!" Papyrus takes ahold of your hand and squeezes it, rather affectionately. He then rushes up the stairs, almost causing you to trip a few times. He leans the broom against the corner of the hallway, then gestures with his hand with a bow. It was quite rare to see Papyrus acting like a gentleman, but when this side came out, a...complex emotion bubbled up from inside you.

"I THOUGHT I WOULD TAKE A MOMENT TO CLEAN IT UP! SOMETIMES MY BROTHER LIKES TO HIDE…'SURPRISES' UNDER THE MATTRESS. I HATE IT WHEN HE DOES THAT! SERIOUSLY, HOW IMMATURE CAN HE GET?!"

With his hand still in yours, Papyrus walked you into the room.

"I ALSO SUPPLIED YOU WITH A NEW TOOTHBRUSH! MAKE SURE TO BRUSH YOUR TEETH! DENTAL HYGIENE IS IMPORTANT!"

The queen size bed was meticulously made; even the pillows were perfectly aligned. The sheets were black, with a skeleton pattern. Even the pillows had cartoon bones on them. There was also a nightstand with a laptop and lamp on it. A shelf full of various books were next to the bed, mostly ones you have never even heard of before. A closet was to your right, as well as a bathroom that you hoped had a toilet. Overall, the room was quite simple, but still better than where you lived.

Still, how were you going to get to college in the morning? You had no method of transportation, and were there even any bus stations around here? The good news was that your new room had a laptop, so you could access your online textbooks and homework. The bad news was that you had no transportation, nor a job to support yourself. The mere thought of getting a job made you anxious, especially with how tough things are now.

Papyrus gently squeezed your hand.

"SOMETHING TROUBLING YOU, HUMAN?!" he asked, his forehead sweating beads of orange.

"DO YOU NOT LIKE YOUR ROOM?! I CAN MAKE IT MUCH BETTER! TELL ME WHAT YOU WOULD LIKE! I WILL NOT DISAPPOINT MY COOLEST FRIEND!"

You looked up at the skeleton, who stared back at you with frowning eye sockets, awaiting your response.

"N-no…I like it…it's just…" you stammered, struggling to get the words out.

"SPEAK, HUMAN! PLEASE!" Papyrus said, desperation in his voice. You felt another squeeze to your hand, stronger than it has ever been. It almost hurt.

"It's just…I have classes tomorrow. I don't have wheels. These are the only clothes I have. I don't have a job to support myself."

Your voice was beginning to crack slightly. Hating how pitiful you must have looked, you broke eye contact with Papyrus, staring down at the floor.

"LOOK AT ME, HUMAN!" Papyrus took his other hand, lifting your chin up. The sternness of his voice was completely unexpected. The tall skeleton was serious about helping you, refusing to give up on you.

"I WILL HELP YOU IN ANYWAY I CAN! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL DRIVE YOU TO SCHOOL!" Papyrus shouted, pointing a finger in the air. The somewhat serious demeanor he had disappeared as fast as it came.

You shook your head, very well knowing how that would end.

"HMMM, WHHHHHHY NOT HUMAN?!" Papyrus's shoulders slumped. He gave you the saddest look he possibly could. To top it all off, his bottom jaw quivered. How was he able to change moods so quickly?

The expression he was making made it difficult to deny him. Though you wanted to submit, you knew what the consequences would be if some classmates saw you with a monster. Friendships or romantic relationships between monsters were still largely considered taboo.

"It's…complicated, Papyrus. I'm sorry." you said, giving his hand a light squeeze.

Papyrus sighed, but nodded his head, not letting go of your hand. You two stood, hand-in-hand, for an awkward period of time. Eventually, he coughed, clearing his nonexistent throat and then reluctantly freed your hand from his.

"WELL, I HAVE SOME…CHORES TO ATTEND TO! I WILL BE RIGHT BACK!" Papyrus ran down the stairs, storming out through the front door. The clumsy skeleton almost fell down the stairs in his haste.

What were you to do now? It was still only 4:30pm when you looked at your watch, much too early for bed. You did not have anything else to do, and it was uncomfortable being alone in the house with Sans. Doing college homework on the laptop was your only option. Sighing, you laid down on the bed, grabbing the laptop from the nightstand. Upon opening it, you saw copious amounts of…X-rated images. There was nothing particularly exciting about these images to a human, though a skeleton would love these. You could not help but view some of the images on there, distracting yourself from doing homework.

"you've really got a thing for skeletons, don't you?"

You abruptly slammed the laptop shut; your face beginning to sweat profusely. Turning your head to the left, you saw the small skeleton, snickering. You could not believe you had been caught watching the skeleton equivalent of porn.

"kinky humans like you deserve to be pun-ished." Sans was puffing on a cigarette, staring at you. The second-hand smoke trail coming toward your face made you cough.

"I-i-it's not w-what it looks l-like! T-t-this was already o-open! I-I-I was jus-" You tried to say, but the words came out jumbled. The rest of what you were saying could have been turned into a crossword puzzle.

"calm down kiddo. i'm only kiddin' with you." Sans winked, extending his arm to pet your shoulder. He scared the living daylights out of you, but you managed to let out a nervous, forced laugh.

"W-what did y-you come in for?" you asked, trying not to stutter.

The cigarette he was smoking mysteriously vanished in blue fire.

"i heard you talking to my brother about getting a job. i know a place that is hiring. the owner of the place is very…hot. i'm sure he'll hire you, so cheer up, pal."

He pets you on the shoulder again, only much harder. What was his deal?

I wish Papyrus was here right about now…

"come on, let's go to Grillby's."

You truly did not want to go with Sans, but there was something about this skeleton you could not ignore. You were also in desperate need of a job or two, and did not wish to live with the brothers forever.

"O-okay…" you said, trying to hide the tension in your voice, but failing to do so. You sighed, sliding off the bed. Once up, Sans grabbed your hand, startling you. A shriek almost escaped your lips, but it was muffled by blue magic.

"we're gonna be teleporting. hold on tight, kiddo."

The room around you began to distort and waver, as if the whole room were a facade. The environment was spinning, causing your stomach to toss and turn like an ocean. You closed your eyes, clutching San's boney hand into a death grip. Reality itself felt like it was tearing apart.

Then, everything disappeared with a flash.


	5. Ketchup, Spaghetti, and Secrets Oh My!

(Ugh…what the…?)

Your eyes opened, still discombobulated from being transported so quickly from one point to another. Getting up was a difficult task, since your limbs felt heavy, and the splitting migraine you had worsened matters. Every time you tried standing, you would plummet back down. Teleportation looked easy on television, but in real life, it was like riding on an interdimensional rollercoaster. When the environment around you stopped spinning, you could see a skeleton's hand extend towards you.

"first time is always the worst for humans," He said, helping you off the ground. Though it took a few minutes to stop wobbling, your feet became used to solid ground again.

"H-how did you recover so easily?" You asked, seeing that he was not in the same state as you.

"monsters are made of magic. that's why teleporting isn't a problem for me," he responded in a matter-of-fact way, shoving his hands in his jacket pockets.

"think you can walk?"

You nodded, though they still felt a little like jelly and your stomach was not doing so well either. At least you did not eat before leaving, or you would have been getting ill. Where exactly were you though? There was the distinct smell of garbage lingering in the air, making your already sour stomach turn. Abandoned colorful candy wrappers, cans, chip bags, other litter were scattered all over the wet pavement. It seemed that you were in the gap of two buildings, each side lined with trashcans and dumpsters. Strange…the place Sans teleported you looked like…an alleyway!?

"What're we doing in an alley!? A-are you planning to murder me?" You accidentally blurted, not thinking before saying those words aloud. Your thoughts were leading to all sorts of scenarios, all of them being equally unpleasant. Still, saying something like that made you feel terrible inside.

"that's not a nice thing to say to a friend. i'm not the bad guy you make me out to be." Sans said, in the same tone of voice he always spoke in. Thankfully, he did not seem very hurt by what you said. You still could not help but feel like trash though.

"T-then why did you chase me that day?!" You shouted, not holding back this time. You were so caught up in a frenzy, that your thoughts came out uncensored.

Awkward silence. Sans only stared at you, his expression looking pensive.

"S-Sans?" That was the first time you had said his name, burning as it left your lips. When you looked up at him again, his eye sockets were completely void. The white specs that were in the middle of each socket had disappeared.

"guess i can't hide it anymore." He began, the seriousness in his voice shaking you to the core. With his empty sockets fixed on to you, he continued.

"i wasn't the one chasing you."

Your mouth dropped open.

"You…weren't?" was all you managed to utter. Now when you thought about it, if he truly wanted to murder you, then he would not have returned your bag. Papyrus most likely would not have approved of it either, and Sans was always the one to please his younger sibling. The smaller skeleton did behave a little strangely around you though, especially when he stared at you with such intensity.

"let's just take this inside, okay? you must be freezing out here." He said, motioning you with his arm to follow.

He was right. You were shivering the whole time, mostly because of fear and partially due to the cold, winter weather.

You followed Sans out of the alley, finding yourself in what appeared to be a square. It was much nicer and cleaner than the alley, and there were many small shops and restaurants around. The square was not too busy; there were a few monsters walking about, but it was not bustling. That was to be expected with how cold it had been lately.

Grillby's was not very far. In fact, right as you turned out of the alley to the right, there it was with it's large neon sign, fire logo, and glass door. Sans opened the door, holding it open for you.

Right upon walking in, you were hit with the overwhelming scent of grease. The place was a modern looking restaurant, with sleek, crimson décor. There were a couple of booths and tables, as well as bar with stools. In the corner of the room was a jukebox, playing an old classic song from the 1960s, and above it was a neon sign saying "Grillby's". It was quite busy in there, with many monsters eating, drinking or singing drunk karaoke. You felt your social anxiety beginning to flare up. Noise and crowds were two of the things you hated the most, next to speeches. How were you going to work in such a busy place?

"it's okay, pal. no need to be so tense." Sans said, giving your arm a firm pet. This made you tense up more, since you did not quite trust the smaller skeleton yet. After that awkward moment, it just made you feel even more uncomfortable to be around him. You did accuse him of wanting to murder you, after all. How could he act so calm after you said something so horrible to him? It was like nothing had happened between you two.

Sans took a seat on a vacant stool, petting his hand on the one next to him. You were hesitant, but also did not want to stand around looking like a fool, so you sat next to him, letting out a small sigh.

"so what do you wanna eat?" He asked.

Diners were known for serving food practically dripping in grease. Your stomach was not in optimal shape after the teleportation, so anything greasy was not an option for you.

"I'll have a milkshake." You said. Sans' smile widened, as if you just told a funny joke. You looked at him, puzzled.

"don't like grease, huh? heh, you're reminding me of Papyrus. every time we come here, he orders a milkshake."

You must have been turning red, since Sans chuckled at you, grinning widely. Something about that name sent your heart racing, but you could not explain the reason why. Just as Sans was about to say something, a man who looked like he was on fire came out from the backroom. He was a nicely dressed fire monster, wearing a buttoned up, white long-sleeved shirt with a black vest, black slacks, a fancy bow tie, and glasses. You assumed that the fire man was Grillby, the owner of the establishment.

"hey Grillbz, what's up?" Sans asked, smiling his signature grin.

Grillby responded with a small wave. He did not seem like the type who talked very much, possibly because he did not have a mouth…or did he?

"could i get a burger, and a milkshake for them?"

The fire man nodded, writing down the order. You could not help but wonder how he could even touch anything, being made of fire. You guessed that magic fire was different from natural fire. If he did not have the intention to burn anything, then maybe that was the reason? Monster seemed to defy logic, but you guessed that was what made them magical.

Seeing that Grillby was about to leave again, you mustered up the courage to ask him what you truly came for.

"Do you think I could get a job here?" You asked, straightening your posture to make yourself seem confident.

Grillby nodded, sticking his index finger up as to say "one moment" before heading into the backroom. Sans petted you lightly on the back, which would have made you flinch, but you were just relieved that your job request was not rejected.

"see? didn't i tell you he was chill for a hot-head? i told you he would hire you." Sans had a ketchup bottle in his hand, sipping it through his teeth. You were wondering how Grillby had so much patience to deal with Sans's antics half of the time. Sans seemed to be a swell guy though. You felt yourself beginning to warm up to him some.

Speaking of warm, after a half an hour passed, Grillby came back with a tray, holding Sans's burger and your milkshake, and a piece of paper in his other hand. He hands the paper to you, then places the two items on the counter.

"T-thank you, sir." You give him a nod.

He bows his head, then takes a towel and begins cleaning. For someone who did not talk, Grillby emanated the aura of a true gentleman through his actions. Sans handed you a pen, smiling at you as if to congratulate your social accomplishment (that was what you had assumed anyway). You smiled back at him, but that soon disappeared. Upon clicking the pen, a small shock was sent through your thumb, causing you to gasp and drop it. You stare at Sans, giving him a frustrated scowl. However, it melted once you saw him laugh. He got you good, and you knew it.

"did that you find that little prank to be…shocking?" Sans chuckled, proceeding to down a whole bottle of ketchup.

"Ha ha, very funny." You tried to feign anger, but ended up laughing instead. Sans was not such a bad skeleton man after all, but something was still nagging at you. How did he know someone was chasing you that day? Did he have some kind of sixth sense? It was nothing but a never ending maze of secrets with him.

"Hey, Sans…?" The tension that sparked between you two while outside ignited once again.

"i know what you're about to say." Before you could even finish, you were cut off. He must have known you were growing tired of dancing around the subject.

"i'll tell it to you straight, kiddo. do you remember that fire on the news?"

You nodded your head, wanting him to keep going.

"the people who were following you also caused that fire." The white spec in his eyes disappeared as he said this. Something inside you shattered upon hearing these words. But still, how did he know all of this? Why was he still evading your question?

"But…how…?"

"guess you could call it a gut feeling, but skeletons don't have stomachs." He was trying to laugh it off, but you could somehow tell it was forced.

"S-Sans…" Your voice was almost below a whisper. Why would he not just tell the truth? Was it truly that hard? Sans sighed, the perpetual smile on his face desperately trying to frown.

"you wouldn't understand. forget about it."

The tension between you and Sans was becoming unbearable. It was best to not keep pressuring him though, since it was evident that you were bothering him. You looked at your milkshake, noticing that it had almost completely melted. It was not very appealing to you anymore, but you began drinking it anyway. It was a mild distraction from the painful feelings.

"you know; my brother really cares about you. he talks about you a lot, telling me how good of a pal you are."

Hearing him say that almost made you choke; you had to take a moment to cough in a napkin. First he teases you about your "skeleton obsession", then catches you accidentally looking at naked skeleton pictures, and now he keeps bringing Papyrus in the conversation. Was this some kind of joke?

"i can tell that you really care about him too."

You pulled your scarf, trying to hide the rosiness of your cheeks, but to no avail. The warm sensation had taken over your whole face, and you could not use Grillby's magical fire heat as an excuse. Sans notices this, laughing at your reaction.

"my bro is the coolest, don't you agree? actually, never mind. i already know the answer to that." He winks at you, only making you blush more.

(My god Sans, cut me some slack!)

"I-I'm just going to finish my milkshake now…"

You were trying to keep your cool, smiling due to embarrassment.

"that isn't the only thing shaking right now." Sans practically jabbed you in the heart with that statement. It was true, your whole body was trembling. You wanted to brush it off as anxiety or just being cold, but something felt…odd. Words could not accurately describe the feeling within you, but there was one thing you knew for sure. You deeply cared about that lanky, dorky, spaghetti-loving skeleton, and he had become important to your life. You cherished all the time you spent with him, and if you could relive it, you most definitely would.

Was this determination? No, it was not just that. There was something else in the mixture, but what exactly was it? What was Sans even hinting at?

Well, there was no point constantly dwelling on it. You had your own problems to focus on, like filling out the application in front of you. Sans was probably just finding another way to distract you again, by using Papyrus of all things. Still, how could the question you were asking be so difficult for him to give a proper answer to? Well, if he was not going to tell you, then your only choice was to find out yourself. There were a lot more mysteries to the skeleton brothers than you had previously expected. Who was that skeleton man in black? Why did Sans not want to tell you how he knew you were being chased?

This was like one big puzzle, waiting to be finished, but you were determined.

"hey, i'm broke. think you can pay for the both of us?"

"Sure, I'll pay the bill." You said. It was the least you could do after accusing him of being a murderer. Thankfully, you had some money in your pocket, though you were unsure if monsters accepted human currency.

"nah, i'm only kidding with you,"-He turns to Grillby. "hey Grillbz, put it on my tab."

He must have been a regular customer if he had his own tab and called the owner of the place by a nickname. That explained why he also looked quite pudgy, or maybe he was just big-boned?

You and Sans walked out of the entrance after you turned in your application. The grease smell of the restaurant stunk up your clothes and hair. Something told you that Papyrus would not be pleased about this, but you did not have any clothes to change in to. Looks like you were doomed to smell like a grease ball for awhile.

"papyrus should be home right now. i bet he's wondering where you are. i should take you to him. let's get going, pal."

Sans extended a hand to you, and you grasped it. Before you could even bat an eyelash, you were in the middle of the living room floor of the skeleton brothers' house. Immediately, your legs gave out from under you. You took a moment to curse your lack of magical properties.

"SANS?! IS THAT YOU?!" Papyrus came out of the kitchen, wearing his pink frilly "kiss the cook" apron with a pink chef hat to match.

"hey, what's up bro?" Sans said, as casually as always, while you were still barely trying to stand. Papyrus put his hands on his hips, furrowing his skeleton brows.

"DON'T YOU 'WHAT'S UP' ME, BROTHER! YOU VERY WELL KNOW IT'S DINNERTIME! YOU WERE AT THAT GREASE HOLE AGAIN, WEREN'T YOU?! HONESTLY SANS, WHY WON'T YOU STAY HOME FOR ONCE AND TRY MY COOKING?!" He stops ranting for a second to point at a lone, dirty sock near the wall, sticky notes above it. "AND WOULD YOU PICK UP YOUR SOCK ALREADY?!"

"ok." Sans said, doing what he was told…literally. He picked up the sock, only to put it down again.

"SANS! DON'T LEAVE IT ON THE FLOOR!"

"ok." Sans puts it on the TV stand.

"NOOOO! NOT THERE! THAT'S UNSANITARY! BRING IT TO YOUR ROOM, SANS!"

Papyrus's face was turning bright orange, his eyes bulging from his sockets. If he had hair, he would be ripping it out right now.

"but it's lonely." Sans winks at you, and you could not help but giggle.

"IT CAN JOIN THE REST OF YOUR DIRTY SOCKS!"

"so you want all my dirty socks on the living room floor?"

"NOOO! I WANT THEM IN YOUR ROOM!"

"ok." Sans picked up his sock.

"oh yeah, they said they want some of your spaghetti," Sans pointed right at you. You did a double take, looking at Sans, Papyrus, then Sans again.

(W-wait! I never said that!)

Papyrus was touched. He had his hands on his face, giggling with delight.

"OH GOODIE! THE GREAT PAPYRUS WOULD BE FLATTERED TO HAVE YOU TRY HIS SPAGHETTI!"

Before you could even react, Papyrus grabbed you, dragging you into the kitchen. You briefly got a glimpse of Sans before Papyrus completely pulled you through the doorway. He was chuckling, putting the sock back down on the floor.

(Figures…)

"HAVE A SEAT, MY COOL HUMAN FRIEND!" Papyrus pulled out a chair for you, beckoning you to sit down with a sheepish smile on his face. You did not deny his offer, so you sat down, and he pulled you in. Within a few minutes, Papyrus set a nice, piping hot plate of spaghetti in front of you. The smell of it was quite alluring, even better than normal spaghetti.

"SINCE MY BROTHER ALREADY ATE AT THAT GREASE HOLE, THAT MEANS THERE'S MORE FOR US!" Papyrus said, sitting down on the opposing side of the table with his own plate, with his eye sockets staring expectantly at you. You stared back at him, noticing a slight bit of tangerine color on his ivory cheekbones. Not wanting to keep him waiting any longer, you took a bit of the spaghetti.

The tomato sauce was savory with a hint of sweet, and the noodles themselves were boiled to perfection. They were buttery, warm, and slippery as you chewed them. There seemed to be a hint of garlic, basil, and other spices mixed in, creating a perfect harmony in your mouth. This was your first time ever trying Papyrus's spaghetti, since the last time he made it, his "special sauce" had exploded in your faces.

"This is great, Papyrus!" You exclaimed, making the tall skeleton's blush spread to his entire face.

"I-I-I KNEW YOU WOULD ENJOY A HOME COOKED MEAL…UNLIKE A CERTAIN BROTHER OF MINE! I'M HAPPY THAT YOU'RE JUST AS PASSIONATE ABOUT THE ART OF SPAGHETTI AS I AM, HUMAN!"

The confident skeleton strikes what you could only describe as a confident "bishie" pose. You could have sworn that you saw sparkles and roses around him, though maybe you had been watching a little too much anime. Even his red scarf was flowing, despite there being no wind. It did not matter either way; your adrenaline rose to dangerous levels. If your heart were to beat any faster, you may just collapse. Papyrus had the most intense gaze on you, not a single word escaping from the mouth of the normally loquacious skeleton.

"Human, I have…something to tell you…" He began, twiddling his fingers. You could hear his feet shuffling against the kitchen tile. Just when you thought your adrenaline rush had reached its maximum limit, it increased even more. You were practically squirming in your chair from the anticipation.

"I've got…" He said, his voice much quieter than normal. You were quite sure that your soul was going to turn blue at that point.

"S-SOME NEW CLOTHES FOR YOU! ISN'T THAT GREAT? NOW YOU DON'T HAVE TO WEAR THE SAME CLOTHES FOR TOMORROW! LET'S FINISH EATING, THEN I'LL SHOW YOU! NYEH HEH HEH!"

You let out a sigh of relief, but were also a little disappointed. Was it necessary for him to make that so tense all for nothing? That explained why he suddenly left earlier though. Papyrus was a thoughtful mon-no, not just a monster, a friend, maybe even a best friend.

(Maybe staying here was the best thing I've done in awhile….)

You thought, taking another forkful of spaghetti.


	6. Golden Flower Dreams

(Side note: This is my first time portraying Undyne and Alphys. Please be gentle with me!)

There you were, surrounded by golden flowers, swaying in the wind as if to give you a cheery greeting. A light, spring breeze kissed your cheeks, while the grass tickled your bare feet. In the air was the sweet aroma of spring blossoms and pungent earth after rainfall. Butterflies were dancing, fluttering about gracefully to some distant melody. The sun above shined brightly, filtering through the trees' leaves. A light shroud of mist covered the scene, filling you with a calm feeling.

(Where...am I?)

Careful to not disturb the flowers, you began to walk forward, the grass brushing against your...dress? You thought that was rather strange, since you were wearing pajama pants before. Looking down at your outfit, you saw that you were in a white gown, with an oddly familiar golden symbol on it. For some reason, the gown felt like something you had worn before, but how could that possibly be true? An overwhelming sense of déjà vu washed over you, but why?

As you continued to walk, a second pair of feet could be heard from somewhere. You stopped, noticing a tall figure in the mist. Though it was difficult to make out the details, you knew very well who it was.

(P…Papyrus?)

You tried calling to the figure, but no words came out. Just silence. He was gradually getting closer, slowly revealing his face and clothing from the mist. Papyrus was wearing the same white gown you wore, and his expression could only be described as one full of…love. It was not any type of love in particular…just love in its purest, unadulterated form: the love of an angel. Before you knew it, he was standing only a few inches away from you, bending down to meet you face-to-face.

If it were not for the calmness that washed over you, you would have sprinted far away into the forest. His teeth were so close to your lips, to the point where you felt his breath. You found yourself wanting to pull back, but at the same time, natural curiosity took over. 

….

Suddenly, you felt something wet and slimy on your lips. You opened your eyes, only to be greeted by a little white fur ball. This dog seemed to be everywhere!

"Ack, okay, okay, I'm awake now!" You told the Pomeranian. It looked at you with affection in its black eyes. It was hard to resist its cuteness, so you gave it a few pets on the head.

(Even though you're a troublemaker, you're still a cutie. How'd you get in here though?)

You looked to notice that your door was slightly ajar, even though you closed it last night. You were overtired the other day after having to deal with college and work, so you blamed it on that. Yawning, you got yourself out of bed. The little dog made himself comfortable, curling up in the warm spot where you rested.

It has been a little less than month living with the skeleton brothers, and it was one of the most pleasant, and hilarious, moments of your life. You worked for Grillby's as a busser, along with his daughter, who would occasionally come by and help. The first day was…rather terrible when you ended up having a panic attack, but Grillby and Sans were nice enough to help you through it. After awhile, you became comfortable working there, and got paid a good bit! Soon, you would be able to buy your own house and a new car, so you will not have to take the bus to college anymore! Working for a monster-owned business had its benefits; you literally got paid in gold coins! It looked like things were finally improving in your life. Of course, you still had social anxiety, but you were gradually becoming more confident, especially with Papyrus's encouragement.

As you walked down the steps, the scent of breakfast lured you into the kitchen. Papyrus was cooking something on the stove. Once you entered the kitchen, he turned his head, his eye sockets sparkling.

"AH, HUMAN! YOU'RE AWAKE JUST IN TIME!" Papyrus exclaimed, running over to you with his arms extended. He pulled you into the largest embrace you had ever received, lifting you off the ground. This was the typical greeting between you two now.

"G-good morning Papyrus. W-what did you make today?" You stuttered. Seeing his face brought the dream back into your mind, and all the emotions associated with it.

Papyrus sat you down on the kitchen chair, then quickly returned to the stove, taking the pan and flipping its content on to your plate.

"I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, FOUND THIS RECIPE ONLINE! I BELIEVE IT'S CALLED AN 'OM-ELETTE'? I HOPE YOU LIKE IT, HUMAN!" Papyrus said, clasping his hands together.

It did look quite appetizing. Papyrus was a magnificent cook, though Sans once told you that this was not always the case. His extreme dedication greatly improved his craft, proving that anyone can do something if they tried. You cut a small piece with your fork, then took it into your mouth. It was perfect, just as you expected!

"My compliments to the chef." You said, giving him nod. He put his hands on his ivory cheeks, blushing brightly.

"MY, HUMAN! YOU HAVE QUITE A WAY WITH WORDS! I'M IMPRESSED BY YOUR AMAZING FLIRTATION SKILLS!"

You could not help but giggle, but quickly stopped when you processed his last two words.

(D-did he seriously think I was flirting? N-no…I'm sure I heard that wrong!)

Your face began to feel warm, turning into a full blush within seconds.

"WHOOPSIE DOOPSY! I ALMOST FORGOT! WOULD YOU LIKE SOMETHING TO DRINK?!" Papyrus asks, seeming a little nervous.

"T-tea would be nice please." You respond, trying to hide your flushed cheeks. Papyrus quickly runs to the cabinet, almost tripping on his own feet. With how clumsy he could be, you were surprised that he had not broken a bone yet.

"I KNOW THE PERFECT TEA! I'LL BOIL IT STRAIGHT AWAY!" Papyrus boils water in a tea kettle, and after a few minutes, it begins whistling. A steaming hot cup of tea was placed in front of you in no time.

"I URGE YOU TO BE CAREFUL HUMAN! WE DON'T HAVE ANY BANDAIDS, SO DON'T BURN YOUR TONGUE!"

You took Papyrus's advice and let it cool for a few minutes. After checking it with your fingertips, you took a small sip. The flavor was mildly sweet and mellow; very relaxing.

"What kind of tea is this?" You asked, taking another sip.

"IT'S GOLDEN FLOWER TEA," Papyrus takes the box, pointing at the image of some golden flowers. "UNDYNE TOLD ME ABOUT IT! IT HAS A NICE FLAVOR, DOESN'T IT?!"

You nearly spit out the tea. The memory of the dream was coming back, stronger than ever: you and Papyrus, in a field of golden flowers, him so close to your face…breathing. The blushing came back again, right after you tried so hard to be rid of it. Papyrus looks at you, with his face slackened and his "brow" furrowed.

"HUMAN? DO YOU HAVE A FEVER? YOUR FACE HAS BEEN LOOKING…BLUSHY THIS WHOLE TIME…" He scratches his head with his finger. You tried uttering a response, but before you could, he walks over to you, then touches your forehead against his!

"P-P-P-Pap-!"

It was like the dream was becoming real! You were not prepared for something like this, especially not so early in the morning!

(W-w-why didn't he just use a thermometer!?)

"HMMM…YOU FEEL A BIT HOT…ARE YOU FEELING SICK?" There was a hint of concern in his voice. He pets you on the head lightly.

"I-I-I-I'm fine…!" You squeak, your face still feeling like it was on fire.

"ARE YOU POSITIVE, HUMAN?" He takes a sponge from the sink, preparing to clean the frying pan, but still has his sockets on you.

"Y-y-yes! Papyrus, p-p-please!" His intense focus on you drove your heart insane.

"WELL, IF YOU ARE FEELING SICK, BE HONEST WITH ME HUMAN! I PROMISE TO TAKE EXCELLENT CARE OF YOU!" Papyrus pets your head again, then walks over to the sink to do some dishes.

(Crisis averted…barely.)

Breakfast was great for you overall, except the forehead thing of course, but something was missing…a certain comedian.

"Hey, Papyrus."

"YES?!" Papyrus asked, turning his head towards you from the sink.

"Where's Sans? Doesn't he normally eat breakfast with us?"

"HE'S BEEN DOING SCIENCY STUFF IN HIS SECRET ROOM LATELY. I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE DEAL HAS BEEN WITH HIM!" Papyrus finishes the last of his dishes, stacking them back in the cabinets.

"Secret…room?" You cant your head. You have seen sci-fi books stacked on top of the table in the living room, but had no idea that Sans was a real scientist.

"YES, SECRET ROOM! HE DOESN'T EVEN ALLOW ME IN THERE, AND I'M HIS COOLEST BROTHER! I HATE IT WHEN HE KEEPS SECRETS FROM ME!" His voice was tinged with sadness.

"BUT I RESPECT HIS WISHES BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT BROTHERS DO FOR EACH OTHER!"

You still were not quite used to the way his emotions flipped so suddenly. What was this secret room he spoke of? One time, while in the backyard, you noticed a locked door on the back of the skeleton brothers' house. The window of the door was covered with a thick sheet, hiding whatever was inside.

One of these days…I will find out what Sans is hiding!

"HUMAN! DID YOU KNOW THAT CHRISTMAS IS COMING UP SOON!?" Papyrus excitedly bounced up and down like a child.

(Already?! What?!)

You have been so busy with college and work that it had completely slipped your mind. Was the year already going by that fast? Well, you already knew that it was December, and you did help Papyrus decorate, but it still came as a shock to you.

(Ah! That means I need a gift for Papyrus and Sans! What am I going to do?)

"IN FACT, UNDYNE AND ALPHYS WILL BE VISITING TODAY! WE'RE ALL GOING TO GO TO THE MALL! AREN'T YOU EXCITED?!" Papyrus quickly walks up to you, giving your body a shake.

"A-ah! Y-y-y-yeah!" You said, starting to feel dizzy.

(Dang, I forgot that too!)

"YOU'RE LOOKING FEVERISH AGAIN THOUGH…ARE YOU SURE YOU'RE WELL ENOUGH TO COME WITH US?!"

Caught blushing again…when did he become so observant?

"I'm fine Papyrus!" You said, laughing.

Though you did feel a little lightheaded. It was not just because of Papyrus shaking you either. The sensation stood with you for the rest of the morning. 

….

"HEY BONEHEAD, HURRY UP AND OPEN THE DOOR!"

A hoarse and thunderous voice could be heard through the door, practically scaring the skin off your bones.

(Sheesh, doesn't she know what a doorbell is?)

"THAT SOUNDS LIKE UNDYNE! SHE FINALLY USED THE DOOR THIS TIME!"  
Papyrus went to open the door while you followed him from behind.

When he opened the door, what you saw shocked you. There was a very large, red-headed, blue fish woman with a giant smile full of piranha-like teeth. She was wearing a black hoodie with a pair of jeans and a red, fish-patterned scarf with gloves, ear muffs, and boots to match. Undyne appeared to be a few inches taller than Papyrus, probably around 6 feet and 4 inches tall.

Her gaze was what you feared the most though, even though one of her eyes were covered by an eye patch; the yellow sclera and slit pupil gave off the vibe of a fierce predator. You hid behind Papyrus, hoping to not be seen, though it was difficult since there was nothing much to hide behind.

"NYEH HEH HEH, HELLO UNDYNE! IT'S A PLEASURE TO SEE YOU AND ALPHYS AGAIN!"

"YEAH! Long time no see, Papyrus! You're still the same lovable dork I've always known!" Her pupil suddenly moves, aiming right at you. "Hey, who is the little squirt behind you?"

(I'm too young to die!)

"AH, THIS IS MY VERY SPECIAL HUMAN FRIEND! THEY LIKE TO PLAY HIDE AND SEEK A LOT…BUT I ALWAYS FIND THEM!" Papyrus suddenly pulls you from behind him, wrapping his arm around your shoulder.

Your knees were shaking uncontrollably as Undyne's one eye observed you. Your breathing picked up, and your heart crept up to your throat. You tried ignoring her eye by looking down. That was when you noticed a yellow, lizard-like monster staring back at you, fiddling with her glasses. She was wearing a pair of Mew Mew Kissy Cutie ear muffs, with a pink pea coat, pink boats, and a white heart patterned scarf. You could also see that she was wearing a white winter dress.

"H-hello. It's nice to m-meet you...hehe." She said with a slight stutter. According to what Papyrus had said about these two, they were an engaged couple. An intense piranha monster girl and a socially awkward, anime-loving lizard monster girl; in this case, opposites surely did attract. You waved at her with a shy grin.

Papyrus's arm was still wrapped around you, pulling you in tighter. Undyne's smile widened into a mischievous grin, and Alphys appeared to be fangirling inside, pink blush stained on her cheeks.

(Uh oh, what's with their expressions?!)

"Very special friend, eh? Whoa, Papyrus, you've been scoring some big time!" Undyne laughed, her jaw opening wide.

(WHAT?!)

How much blushing could your cheeks even handle? This must have been the one hundredth time today!

"NYEH? I DON'T UNDERSTAND! WHAT EVER DO YOU MEAN BY 'SCORING SOME'?!" Papyrus asked, making Undyne double over in laughter. Her raspy voice boomed throughout the house.

Shipping goggles, on! 

….

You carpooled with Sans and Papyrus while Undyne and Alphys went in their own car. The ride was a little awkward, because you could feel Sans's stare down your back from the front seat. Papyrus also would not stop asking if you were unwell, bringing attention to your blushing cheeks.

"ARE YOU POSITIVE THAT YOU AREN'T SICK?! YOUR FACE IS ALL RED AGAIN! WE COULD GO HOME IF YOU WANT!" Papyrus asked, turning his head to you.

"N-no! I-I'm f-"

"bro! sockets on the road!"

"WHOOPS! N-N-NYEEEEH!"

"Aaaaaaah!"

You instinctively took the wheel, swerving just at the right moment to avoid crashing into a blue stop sign. For someone who was careful with almost everything else, Papyrus was sometimes a reckless driver. You looked back at Sans from the front. He had his hoodie pulled over his face, shivering.

(No wonder why he doesn't ride with Papyrus often!) 

….

After one terrifying ride later, you, Papyrus, Sans, Undyne, and Alphys were at the mall. Undyne and Alphys were going to go to some anime store. Papyrus did like collecting action figures. He showed you them all, naming every character and giving a long description on them. As much as you wanted to tag along with Sans and Papyrus, you did not want Papyrus to know you were getting a gift for him, so you tagged along with the girls.

It was awkward being the third-wheel, but they only limited their public displays of affection to hand-holding and cheek kissing. The mall was also not too crowded, since it was quite early. Undyne still scared you though, which did not help your anxiety, but Alphys's presence somehow made you feel calmer.

"NGAAHHH! There it is, the land of anime right before our very eyes! Oh my GOD, I've been waiting for this day my whole entire life! Flower princesses, kissing robots, magical knights wielding mighty swords, high school girls running with toast, HERE WE COME!"

"I-It's like anime heaven! T-this is a d-dream come true!"

Alphys had tears streaming down her face, and Undyne was posing triumphantly.

(They're acting kinda drama-whoa!)

Undyne picks both you and Alphys up without breaking a sweat.

"LET'S BUY EVERYTHING IN THE ENTIRE STORE!" The anime-loving fish warrior Undyne charges into the store, shouting out her signature battle cry.

There were different sections throughout the store, some parts selling manga and anime while others sold toys, cute plushies, figurines, clothes, pencils, keychains, and various other commercial merchandise. This was definitely heaven to an anime-lover; you found yourself enjoying every minute of it. You liked anime, and even managed to convince Papyrus to watch some with you.

Undyne goes to the nearest shelf of anime and sets both you and Alphys down. She starts shuffling through them, looking like a thief searching for gold.

"Oh my god, Undyne! They have the whole series of Mew Mew Kissy Cutie, a-and it even has special c-cut scenes!" Alphys was practically bursting with excitement, clutching on to her new found treasure and squealing.

"Aw hell yeah! C'mon, let's get it!"

These two sure loved their anime. You found them to be an endearing couple. Still, what were you going to get for Papyrus? You were going to look at the figurines, but he might have had most of them. Getting a gift for Sans was easy, but it was a little more complicated when it came to Papyrus.

"H-hey girls…what should I get fo-"

"Papyrus?"

She knew who was on your mind right before the name left your lips.

"You can't just buy him a gift!" She exclaimed, grabbing the attention of other shoppers. "You gotta put some HEART, PASSION, AND SOUL into it!"

She emphasizes those three words with her body language: For heart, she placed a hand on her chest. For passion, she clenched her fists and shook them. Lastly, for soul, she raised her arms into the air…in an almost delicate manner…almost.

"Then what else am I supposed to do?"

"Duh, it's so obvious! You make something for him, dork!" She responds, nearly spitting in your face and splitting your ear drums.

"M-m-make something for him? But what…?"

"Y-you could m-make some chocolate for him. T-t-then you could confess your love to him under a cheery b-blossom tree." Alphys chimes in the conversation.

Your heart skipped a beat.

"What?! L-love?! B-b-but I don't like him like that!" You took a moment to look around you, hoping the skeleton brothers were not close by.

"B-b-but, you blush a lot w-when you're near him…"

"BAHAHAHA, just look at how red you're getting now! You're turning into a tomato!"

"T-t-that's just my anxiety!" You tried to explain, but it did not seem to be working.

"Yeah right! You have one GIGANTIC crush on Papyrus! There's no point in denying your undying love when it's written all over your face!" Undyne was laughing loudly, clutching her sides.

"F-forbidden l-love between a monster and h-human…sounds like the perfect plot for an anime, only it's r-real!" Alphys was fangirling with her hands (or claws) on her cheeks.

You thought Sans's teasing was bad; this was even worse!

(This is so embarrassing!)

"B-but…"

"Me and Alphys are gonna have to set you two love birds on a date! Right, Alphys?"

"T-they would make an adorable c-couple…"

"Hey, I just got the best idea! Wanna hear it?"

"N-n-no…not r-"

Ignored.

"You should go up to Papyrus and start singing 'All I Want for Christmas Is You'! Right when the song ends, you should kneel down, take his hands, and ask him to fly you to heaven! Then, he'll pile on the smooches!"

Protagonist loses 999999 HPs!

(Crush my soul, just crush it NOW!) 

….

You, Undyne, and Alphys walked out of the store after what seemed like awhile. Undyne and Alphys were carrying bags of anime, manga, and plushies. Unfortunately, you were not able to buy anything for Papyrus. Undyne was right; it was best to make something from your heart…but you were still convinced that you did not have feelings for the taller skeleton! Why would a human love a skeleton anyway? Would that make you a freak if you did? If it was true that you were infatuated with Papyrus, that kind of love would be forbidden.

(I don't care what Undyne says…I don't have a crush on Papyrus!)

As you were trying to figure out your complex feelings, dread struck you like a blade to the stomach, and a familiar sensation went down your spine like lightning. You remember this strange feeling from about a month or so ago.

(Oh god no…)

The sensation was only beginning to worsen as you continued walking. It could only be described as a million fingers or spiders crawling up your spine. The air suddenly began feeling dense, and your breathing started to become strained.

(Someone is following us!)

You turned around, seeing a crowd of people mixed with some monsters. The mall had become much more crowded now that it was around or past lunchtime. No one in particular had any a negative vibe about them, but you were still feeling uneasy. Someone was following you though; you were certain about it. The last time this happened, you blamed it on paranoia, but this was not just an overactive imagination.

When you turned back to Undyne and Alphys, they were gone, swallowed by an influx of people and monsters. You began to panic, pulling at your hair.

(I have to call someone and let them know!)

To get out of the crowd, you made a dash for the nearest store. Luckily, this store was much less crowded than the shopping halls. You pulled out the phone that Papyrus had given to you, hoping to reach either Undyne or Alphys. It was a good thing that you exchanged numbers!

(You've got to be kidding me!)

The pulse beating in your ears became louder, blocking out all other background noise. The only thing you could hear was your breath, raggedly moving in and out of your mouth at irregular intervals. Your hands could barely hold the phone; they were shaking violently as the blood drained from your face.

The phone was dead. You were lost in the mall with a potential pursuer.

There was no way this could end well.


	7. Surrounded By Light

The thoughts in your head were spinning faster than your brain could even process them, like a merry-go-round on overdrive. You knew your stalker must have been getting closer, and standing in the store was not going to do you any good. After a few minutes of nearly pulling your hair out, an idea hatched in your mind. Before parting ways, everyone decided that they should meet up at the Mettaton fountain downstairs.

(That's it! I should go meet them and tell them what's going on!)

You ran out of the store, then tried getting yourself lost in the crowd. The stalker would most likely have a hard time finding you amongst all the people and monsters. As you weaved through mass, you bumped into many shoulders and stepped on many feet. The person or monster would complain "watch where you're going!" or "hey, my foot!" and you would apologize each time. Though you had been running through the crowd for awhile, the sensation of piercing eyes on your back never ceased. It was like the person, or thing, behind you was always there, ready to pounce at any moment. What baffled you though was that there was no malevolent person or monster behind you…just some strolling shoppers. That did not deter you from running.

Your heart hammered in your ears with each pound of your step. The perspiration on your temples began to increase; your lungs begin to beg desperately for oxygen. What was behind you? A murderer? Possibly a mugger? Maybe a secret admirer who was taking things to far? Were you going to be mercilessly stabbed, beaten to death, or possibly kidnapped? Flashing images of death plagued your mind.

(I don't know how long I can take this anymore!)

It was still behind you, practically able to breathe down your neck. Your legs were beginning to ache, burning from the long run. This was it; this was how it ends.

No, there was still hope! It cannot end here! For Papyrus, for Sans, for everyone important to you!  
All the sweet memories that flooded your mind filled you with determination. With all the might you had left, you forced yourself to continue running, taking a right turn to find a miracle: the stairway to the first floor! The stalker was still following you, but at least you were in the clearing!

…How wrong you were…

Taking a deep breath, you sprinted down the stairs, hoping to get away from the stalker. Suddenly stumbling, you gave a gasp in surprise as you lost your footing, and before you knew it, you were on your back, sliding down the staircase. Each step painfully knocked against your spine until you found yourself at the end. Groaning, you lifted yourself off the ground, rubbing your sore back.

(Well…at least tha-)

 _ **BAM!**_

Everything became blurry, before fading into darkness.

….

….

….

"Hey…"

….

….

….

"Hey, are you listening?"

….

….

….

"Come on…please wake up!"

….

….

….

"Please…they need you!"

….

….

….

"This is all just a bad dream!"

….

….

….

"I believe in you!"

….

….

….

"[Protag]! Stay determined!"

….

….

….

"You can do it!"

….

….

….

"Do it for him, [Protag]!"

….

….

….

H-huh, what?

Opening my eyes, I found myself surrounded by nothing but light. A voice was calling to me, but I had no idea who the owner was. Where was I, and why was somebody calling out my name? I could have sworn that I was at the mall earlier before…but all my other memories were distant at the moment. Was I…dreaming? I did not remember falling asleep though. If this was a dream though, then I could not complain. It felt so…serene…almost to the point where I could stay here forever. But, at the same time, there was an important task for me to do…and there was…someone I loved who needed me…

"Howdy, [Protag]! I'm so glad that you're awake!"

Emerging from the light was a little goat monster wearing a yellow and blue long-sleeved shirt. He was wearing a golden flower crown on his head, and was holding another one. The kid made his way over to me, raising the crown.

"Could you please kneel down so I could put this on your head?" He said, giving me somewhat of a somber smile.

I did as he said, kneeling down for him. He placed the flower crown on my head. It made me feel like I was a monarch. Hmmm…this dream actually felt a little familiar now when I thought about it.

"What is this place?" I asked him.

"It's a dream, but not just any dream!"

I thought that seemed rather vague, but this dream did feel unordinary. All the dreams I have been having were not very ordinary, actually. Ever since I met the skeleton brothers, things have been different for me. Never mind what I said before…this kid was right.

"Golly, I'm so glad that I was able to reach you! Friend, I have to tell you something."

I nodded my head.

"You're in danger…but don't worry! I can help you out!"

So…I'm in danger? That scares me a little. Um, no, it scares me a lot.

"You see, there are these soulless beings after you. But you can fight them!" The kid was trying to reassure me.

"You just have to believe in yourself! Face your fears head on! You have to be brave, [Protag]!"

What does he mean by soulless beings? I'm confused with all this, but I listen to him silently.

"I know it's scary sometimes, but you've got determination! Do it for everyone, do it for Papyrus, and do it for you most of all! Never give up!" He said, giving me a smile.

I did not know how to respond, but his words were making me feel better. How did he even know me though? Wait, did he just mention Papyrus? Even when he's not in my dreams, his name follows me everywhere. I'm not complaining though.

"Do you promise?" He asked, extending a hand to me. This caught me off guard, but also warmed my heart. I took his hand into mind, giving it a light shake.

"Promise." I said, smiling at him.

The light around us was beginning to darken.

"I have to go now…but don't worry! Just stay determined, no matter what!"

I wanted to ask him so many questions: how he knew Papyrus, how he knew my name, what he meant by "soulless" creatures, why he was acting like we met before…but alas…everything faded back into darkness.

….

….

….

….

"Oooh…ouch…" I groaned, opening my eyes. Everything looked blurry, but I could tell that I was in the guest room of the brothers' house. Ugh, my head was pounding like someone took a hammer to it.  
I was also unable to move most of my body, except for my neck. Even then, it was painful.

"hey, kiddo. you're finally awake." I turned my head, noticing Sans sitting on a chair by my bedside.  
His eye sockets were empty as he stared into me.

"Ugh, my head….what the heck happened?" I groaned, wishing that there were painkillers around.

"i found you knocked out cold by the stairs. papyrus was worried when you didn't come back with Undyne and Alphys." He responded, his voice sounding dead.

Ah, I made Papyrus worry about me…darn, I should have charged my phone. This would have never happened if I did. That does explain the headache though.

"i'm sorry i didn't come sooner. if i was there, this wouldn't have happened. good thing i didn't find you dead, 'cause explaining that to Paps would be difficult."

Why is he apologizing to me? It's not like he did anything wrong.

"you're really not safe here, pal. it would've been best if our paths didn't cross, but hey, fate can be a cruel mistress."

Something about the way he said that made my soul almost shatter into a million pieces.

"What are you saying?" I managed to ask, still groggy.

"if i could've stopped it, i would've. you put yourself in a dangerous situation by befriending Papyrus. i should've stopped it before it happened, but i just wanted him to be happy."

There was now a slight brittleness tinged in his voice…or did I just imagine that?

"Sans…I'm confused. Where is this all coming from?"

I did not understand…why was he saying all these things?

"you wouldn't understand. just give it up."

There he goes again with the mind games.

"Sans…please!"

There was an awkward silence between us, filling the room with tension.

"do you believe in creatures that have no souls? creatures entirely made of darkness and devoid of emotion?"

Whoa, what? That sounds very familiar…

"Sans…could you stop avoiding my question?" I ask, trying not to lose my patience. The acridity in my tone gave it away though.

"do you believe in them?" Sans persistently tries prying an answer out of me. He does not back down very easily.

"I don't know! All I know is that I'm sick of all these bad things happening to me!" I pretty much yell, tears welling up in my eyes.

"listen, i'm only trying to save your life." Sans is gradually becoming more irritated. In one of his eye sockets, I could see a cyan light, but this did not make me stop.

"By destroying the relationship I have with Papyrus? That makes no sense!" I did not back down, but tears were beginning to fall from my cheeks.

"it's for your own good, trust me. quickly get your life back together and get the hell out of here. never come back." Sans firmly says, looking into my eyes. The cyan light had disappeared, leaving his sockets void again. That was it. I break down into a full sob, my chest heaving as I make short gasps for air.

"Why…? Why Sans, why?" I asked, begging him for a legit answer.

Sans leans over, trying to pet me on the shoulder, but I avoid it.

"this hurts me just as much as it hurts you, kid. i'm sorry."

Just when I was about to say something, I hear hurried steps coming towards the door. I quickly wipe the tears off my face with the blanket. Papyrus comes in, carrying a bowl of soup with his oven mitts. That was kind of silly; he did not even have skin…

"OH MY GOD, HUMAN! YOU'VE FINALLY AWOKEN! I WAS WORRIED THAT I WOULD NEVER SEE YOU AGAIN!" His already loud voice seemed to double now that I had this headache, but I was relieved to hear it again. He did sound a little…upset though. This side rarely ever came out, but when it did, I knew that I did something wrong.

"I JUST KNEW YOU WERE UNWELL, BUT YOU CONTINUED TO HIDE IT FROM ME! WHY?! YOU HAD ME WORRIED SICK ABOUT YOU! HUMAN, ARE YOU LISTENING TO ME?!" He puts the soup down on the bed stand, then leans over to me, practically meeting my face.

Seeing Papyrus this upset got to me a lot for some reason. I was not accustomed to the kind of voice he was using on me. I turn my head away from him; not wanting to meet his eye sockets, but I feel an oven meet turn my chin to him.

"NEXT TIME, YOU WILL TELL ME THE TRUTH SO NOTHING TERRIBLE LIKE THIS WILL EVER HAPPEN AGAIN! DO YOU UNDERSTAND?!"

I could no longer conceal my sadness. The waterworks turn back on with full force, like two waterfalls streaming down my cheeks. I cover my eyes with my palms. This was humiliating…why was I so emotional?

Papyrus gasps, his expression turning from angry to horrified within seconds.

"OH NOOOO! I MADE THE HUMAN CRY SANS! NYEH, HUMAN, I'M SO VERY SORRY! D-DON'T CRY ANYMORE, PLEASE! SANS! WHAT DO I DO SANS?! SAAAAANNNNNS!" Papyrus begins whimpering. Without looking at his face, I already knew what was happening. Darn it…I've done it now!

When I took my hands off my eyes, I noticed him bawling, tangerine tears flying from his sockets. He was now a blubbering mess, just like me. I turned my head to Sans, giving him a pleading expression, but he only laughed at the situation…because that was Sans for you.

I had to do something, and fast!

"N-no, I'm sorry! It's okay, Papyrus!" I tried reassuring the crying skeleton, but to no avail.

"B-BUT I MADE MY VERY SPECIAL FRIEND SAD!" Papyrus said between sobs and sniffles. His nose hole began dripping orange-colored…mucus?

"I'm just a little sensitive right now! It's not your fault! Please don't cry!" I reached my hand out to his face, rubbing the tears away from his sockets with my fingers.

"B-BUT H-HUMAAAAAAN!" He whimpers, grabbing ahold of my hand.

Oh no, nothing is working!

"Sans could you help me over here?!" I asked the smaller skeleton, who had been laughing the whole time.

"sorry, but i gotta go take the pet rock for a walk. see ya later." The skeleton winks at me before teleporting out of the room.

Thanks for nothing Sans!

After what seemed like forever, I was finally able to stop Papyrus's crying. He was spoon feeding me some spaghetti soup (of course it would have spaghetti), since I had a difficult time moving. The sounds he would make as he would slowly put the spoon into my mouth was not unlike those of a mother feeding an infant. This would have been a little embarrassing to me, if it were not for the state I was in. My head and back were feeling much better after he gave me some painkillers, but they also made me feel tired.

"HUMAN! HOW WOULD YOU LIKE TO HEAR A STORY! IT'S MY MOST FAVORITE BOOK EVER!" He said, taking a book from the bed stand.

I already knew what book he was referring to. Sans would read it to him every night, but being the lazy skeleton he was, he would always fall asleep, not even halfway through the story. I would often have to pick up where he left off. Though I was not into the story myself, just seeing Papyrus's reactions made me smile. What a precious cinnamon roll he was.

"PEEK-A-BOO WITH FLUFFY BUNNY!" He shows me the cover. It had a white bunny with its paws over it eyes in a flowery field. Yep, I knew it.

"Sure Papyrus." I said, trying to sound as excited as possible, but the sandman had me in his grasps. A yawn escaped my lips, and my eyes were beginning to grow heavy. Papyrus was ecstatic, his eye sockets briefly sparking orange.

"GOODIE! SIT BACK AND RELAX HUMAN! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL READ TO YOU, MY COOLEST, MOST SPECIAL FRIEND!" He takes a seat on the chair, then rubs my head lightly.

I was able to keep up with him for a few pages of the story, but the world around me was already turning dark. When it came time to do the motions again, I was like a melting candle, nearing its end. Though I was fighting to keep my eyes open, the dream world and its golden gates called out to me. The last thing I heard was the click of the lamp light, and something large…moving on to my bed? That might have just been my imagination messing with me again.

"Goodnight, dear human." I heard Papyrus sleepily mumble.

"Good…night." I mumbled back, letting sleep take me.

Before the world around me faded, I felt something hard lightly brush against my cheek.

...

...

...

"I...I love you…"


	8. Sweet n' Fluffy Cinnamon Roll

It had been about a week since the stalker incident in the mall. Life seemed to somewhat return back to normal…well…normal for me, because not the average person gets to live with magical skeleton brothers. My head and back were feeling much better due to Papyrus's touch, love, and care. Unfortunately, I could not go to work due to my injuries, but Sans told me that Grillby understood. He was a pretty chill boss…you know, for a fire elemental.

However, something did change for me. Ever since I was struck in the back of my head, I have been getting these strange visions and dreams. They feel so vivid, that it felt like I experienced them before, but that had to have been impossible. I tried many times before to ask Sans about them when Papyrus was not around, but he would only gaze at me, with a troubled expression on his face. He was still hiding something, I knew he was, but why was he so afraid to tell me? There had to be a way to persuade him to tell me what was bothering him, and why he said those awful things last week. I just wanted him to open up to me…I wanted to understand him…but why was he so resistant?

Well, thinking about it was not going to get me anywhere, so forgetting about it was the best option. For now, I just wanted to enjoy my holiday with the skeleton brothers. Christmas was pretty much just around the corner, and I wanted to cherish all my moments with Papyrus and Sans. This was not the day to have any more sad thoughts for once.

It was a day before Christmas Eve; holiday magic spreading through the air and everywhere. Papyrus and I were making cinnamon bunnies. Back in Papyrus's hometown, a shopkeeper used to make these using her own secret recipe, he told me, and he would always eat them with Sans when they were children. I promised to make some with him. Though I did not know that lady's recipe, I tried my best to make my own. I was a culinary student after all; real chefs have to get creative all the time.

"Ah, there we go! Looks like we're ready to put the last batch in, Pap!" I said, perfecting my last cinnamon bunny's ears. I was quite satisfied with my adorable little creation.

"OH GOODIE! WE MADE SOME CUTE CINNAMON BUNNIES, DIDN'T WE?!"

Papyrus clapped his hands, hopping up and down just like a bunny would. I could see his eye sockets sparking orange inside.

"Yep, they're cute, just like you."

I quickly put a hand to my mouth, realizing that I had just said that aloud.

Looking up at Papyrus, I saw that his face was completely flushed. He turned his head away sheepishly; a goofy smile plastered on his face. Well, technically he was always smiling, but due to magic, it changed slightly according to his mood.

"H-HUMAN, YOU'RE FAR TOO KIND! YOU MAKE MY METAPHORICAL HEART BURST WITH JOY!" Papyrus said, embracing me in his long, boney arms. You would think being hugged by a skeleton would be an unpleasant experience, but for some odd reason, his bones emanated warmth. I joined Papyrus in his blushing, my own mouth forming into a large, goofy grin. I would normally hide my blushing cheeks, but it felt too good at the moment.

"Hey, Papy, why don't you try a cinnamon bunny?" I asked, looking him straight in the eye sockets.

"OH, YES! I'D LOVE TO TRY A CINNAMON BUNNY!" He exclaimed, with me still in his arms.

"Great, try that one rig-ah!"

Before I could finish my sentence, I felt something hard lightly brush against my cheek. I was not paying attention to what had happened, until I saw Papyrus's head move away from my face.

I thought my blushing potential had reached its limits, but my cheeks always proved me wrong. Papyrus gave me a squeeze before letting me go, laughing a satisfied "NYEH HEH HEH" as he did so. What a mischievous cinnamon roll!

"NYEH HEH HEH, YOU'RE THE BEST TASTING CINNAMON BUNNY I EVER HAD, MY VERY SPECIAL HUMAN!" He gave me a smug wink.

My heart felt like it was going to erupt like a volcano.

"P-Papyrus…I-I meant those cinnamon bunnies!" I pointed to the tray of freshly made cinnamon bunnies, cooling on the kitchen counter. He very well knew what I meant; he just wanted to sneak in a kiss. He giggled at my blushing face, then took two bunnies from the tray; one for me, one for him. The sweet cinnamon scent smelled heavenly, making my mouth water.

"WHY DON'T YOU TAKE THE FIRST BITE, HUMAN, SINCE YOU'RE LOOKING FAMISHED!" He said, pointing at where his lips would be if he had them.

It seemed that he noticed me drooling, though he was no different. I could see tangerine colored saliva leaking through his teeth. Seems that the scent had gotten us both hungry.

"Okay, I'll take a quick bite to see if they're good."

I opened my mouth, biting into the thin crust of the dulcet cinnamon bunny.

….

….

….

"Do you prefer cinnamon, or butterscotch?"

….

….

….

"Cinnamon it is then!"

….

….

….

"I know you like cinnamon, my child, but you don't dislike butterscotch, do you?"

….

….

….

"Would you turn up your nose if you saw it on your plate?"

….

….

….

"HUMAN?!"

"Ah!"

My thoughts had shifted away from the present again. This has been happening to me a lot lately.

"H-HUMAN?! IS EVERYTHING OKAY!? YOU…BLANKED OUT FOR A SECOND THERE!" Papyrus asks, giving me a concerned glance.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just was just overblown by the taste is all." I lied of course. It made me feel guilty, but Papyrus would not understand if I told him the truth.

"WOWIE! THEY MUST TASTE AMAZING! I'M GOING TO HAVE TO EXPERIENCE IT MYSELF!" Papyrus exclaimed, then eagerly took a bite out of the cinnamon bunny. His face lite up brightly as he chewed it; his void eye sockets becoming wide and sparkly.

"HUMAN! THIS IS AMAZING! IT'S SO SWEET AND FLUFFY!"

Papyrus was twirling around with pure joy. It was not long until the cinnamon bunny had been completely devoured.

Just at the most perfect time, Sans walks into the kitchen, most likely lured in by the smell. Sans did have a love for food.

"'sup you two. smells good in here. what're you baking?" Sans asked, walking up to both me and Papyrus.

"SANS, LOOK, THEY'RE CINNAMON BUNNIES! THE HUMAN AND I MADE THEM! TRY ONE, THEY'RE DELIGHTFUL!" Papyrus quickly snatches a cinnamon bunny from the tray and hands it to Sans, who shoves the whole thing into his mouth. The smile on his face widened, and I even noticed cyan sparks in both his sockets.

I guess the way to a skeleton's metaphorical heart was through his metaphorical stomach. Seeing two happy skeletons with cinnamon on their jaws filled me with determination.

"not bad you two. these are pretty good." Sans snatched two more from the tray. Where all that food went, I had not the slightest idea.

"AREN'T THEY!? MY SPECIAL HUMAN FRIEND IS A MARVELOUS COOK, JUST LIKE I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS!"

Sans's smile became even wider, confusing Papyrus.

"WHAT'S SO FUNNY BROTHER?!" Papyrus asked, oblivious to the fact that he was about to have a pun time.

"tibia honest, i was gonna make a cinnamon bun pun, but i'm bone-dry of any good ones. guess i'll just…roll with whatever comes to mind." Sans snickered just like he normally would, then gave me a wink.

"BROTHER I DISOWN YOU!" Papyrus's eyes were popping from his sockets, as he stomped his boot in an angry fit. However, a smile was creeping up from the corner of his mouth.

I was practically rolling on the floor laughing.

"Ah, look at all those beautiful lights!" I exclaimed.

"S-so, pretty…" Alphys whispered, holding on to Undyne's hand.

Papyrus, Sans, Undyne, Alphys, and I marveled at the beautiful Christmas lights. Undyne and Alphys had the brilliant idea to go see the annual light festival, inviting us to go with them. All around, there were intricate structures like gingerbread men, trees, nutcrackers, snowmen, candy canes, giant ornaments, and even a giant Santa Clause on his sled with his reindeer, covered in vibrant, multicolored light bulbs. There was even a beautiful light tunnel; glittering green, red, and gold, shining on our faces as we walked through it. One of the most magnificent spectacles was the Christmas garden, where there were glowing fountains with glass decorations on top, trees decorated with blue or golden lights, and a large luminous Christmas tree.

"Alphys and I are gonna get some snacks! See you guys later!" Undyne said, as her and Alphys walked off, leaving me, Sans, and Papyrus together.

It was rather crowded, due to it being the day before Christmas Eve. That made me very nervous, but being with my friends and Papyrus calmed me down.

"WE SHOULD ALL HOLD HANDS SO WE DON'T BECOME SEPARATED!" Papyrus suggested. Before he even finished that sentence, I had already locked my arm with his. A slight blush dusted his cheek bones.

I looked down at Sans, who had his hoodie up and his hands in his pockets. His eye sockets were focused on the ground, and his shoulders were slumped. Papyrus once told me that Sans did go through moods. I had to cheer him up somehow.

"Hey, Sans, why're you skulking?" I asked him, hoping he would catch my pun. It seemed to work, for I heard a chuckle come from the smaller skeleton…and a disapproving grunt from Papyrus.

I extended my hand to the smaller skeleton, who looked at me, a genuine, happy smile on his face. He took my hand, giving it a tight squeeze.

We walked around for a bit, occasionally stopping to take pictures together, until we eventually reached the Christmas plaza, where they had vendors selling snacks, hot chocolate, and other seasonal goods. They even had a small petting zoo.

…A small petting zoo…

Ah! That's right! Papyrus had never even seen a real bunny before! I tugged onto Papyrus's arm, getting him to face toward me.

"WHAT IS IT, MY VERY SPECIAL HUMAN FRIEND?!"

"Come with me, guys!" I said, leading the two skeletons toward the petting zoo. There were some goats, chickens, pigs, and most importantly, rabbits in different pens. Papyrus's eye sockets immediately lit up upon seeing one particular white rabbit.

"OH MY GOD! SANS! IT'S MR. FLUFFY BUNNY! I CAN'T BELIEVE I'M MEETING HIM FOR THE FIRST TIME!" The eager skeleton immediately runs towards the pen, completely ignoring the lady in front of us.

"Hello there!" The lady cheerfully said, giving us a warm wave.

"I see your skeleton friend over there is interested in our bunnies. Do you think he'd like to hold one?"

I was honestly feeling reluctant about that. How would a rabbit react to a giant, magical skeleton? Hopefully it would not have a heart attack…

"I-I'm quite sure he would, ma'am." I said, trying to hide the nervousness in my voice.

The lady motions us to follow her. Sans and I walk, still hand-in-hand, towards the bunny pen.

"MAY I HOLD THAT ONE, HUMAN?! PLEASE?! PLEASE?!" Papyrus was eagerly shaking his fists.

"Alright, eager mc beaver." The lady said. She gently picks up the fluffy white bunny, handing it to Papyrus. He was in a state of pure joy, as he cradled the bunny in his hands. Tangerine tears began falling from his eye sockets.

"S-SAAAANNNSS! H-HUUUUMAAANN! IT'S SO CUTE, AND FLUFFY, AND SOFT! LOOK! HE'S GIVING ME KISSES!"

The tangerine-colored streams leaking from his eye sockets become gushing waterfalls. Sans and I looked at each other, laughing at the scene, and the lady smiled sweetly.

"MAY I KEEP HIM?! PLEASE?!" He asks the lady. His shoulders slumped upon seeing her shake her head.

"I'm sorry, sweetie, but you can't keep the bunny."

I could tell that she was trying very hard not to crush Papyrus's soul.

"B-BUT WHY?!" He whined, snuggling the bunny to his chin. The little white rabbit continued giving Papyrus kisses.

"bro, mr. fluffy bunny has a family." Sans explained.

"OH, ALRIGHT…" Papyrus's spirits dampened a little.

"AT LEAST I GOT TO MEET HIM!"

Well, that was a speedy recovery.

After Papyrus's meeting with Mr. Fluffy Bunny, he was chipper the whole entire drive home. From the front seat, I looked at Sans, who gave me a thumbs up and a wink.

I could already tell that this was the start of a wonderful holiday.


	9. Sweet n' Precious Marshmarrows

"I'm scared." I muttered to both Papyrus and Sans, once the former rang the doorbell.

Papyrus and Sans were invited to a Christmas party by someone named Toriel, a monster I had never met before. I did not enjoy parties very much, not wanting to leave the comfort of home, but Papyrus convinced me to come along.

"NOT TO WORRY! MRS. ASGORE IS VERY NICE! SHE GIVES ME PETS ON THE HEAD AND PIE SOMETIMES!" Papyrus said, trying to reassure me in his special way.

"yeah, chill out kiddo. everything will be alright." Sans smiled. Normally, the smaller skeleton would have a mischievous grin, but this one was…quite sweet. It caught me off guard every time he smiled that way.

Suddenly, the door opened, warmth from the fireplace reaching us from the inside. I could also smell cinnamon and pine needles, and saw holiday decorations on the wall.

A large, goat-like monster with a maternal aura gave us a welcoming smile. Though she did not seem threatening, I instinctively hid behind Papyrus, my teeth chattering and my body shaking.

"Oh, welcome you two! I am delighted that you could make it to our celebration!" The goat woman said, clasping her hands together.

Wait…her voice sounded very familiar. In fact, I remember seeing a younger goat monster just like her in a dream. Sans was staring at me as I curiously poked out from behind Papyrus, getting a good look at the goat moth-oops! Did…I just almost call her mother? I should watch myself, before I end up calling her "mother" aloud. Without even looking at Sans, I still felt his intense gaze upon my me. I was already quite used to his staring by now, that it began bothering me less.

"GREETINGS, MRS. ASGORE! WE GREATLY APPRECIATE YOUR INVITATION!" Papyrus bowed down to Toriel, as if she were a queen.

"Please call me Toriel, my dear." She responded, petting the skeleton on top of his head. Papyrus giggled with glee; a slight blush dusted his cheekbones.

"Come on in and make yourselves comfortable! Frisk was waiting patiently for your arrival!"

The two skeletons walked right in, though I stood on the porch, my knees feeling like they were about to collapse. Toriel noticed me, standing there looking like the awkward fool I was. Inside my mind, though it might have been irrational, I hoped she was not judging me.

"Oh, I did not see you there! You must be the skeleton brothers' friend. Do not be shy, my child, please come in."

Something about the way she smiled made me feel at ease as I walked through the doorway.  
It did not take long for that calm feeling to vanish once I saw the other guests. I did not recognize anyone but Undyne and Alphys, who were sitting on the blue couch, enjoying some kind of beverage in snowmen mugs. There was a fabulous robot talking to a meek ghost wearing reindeer antlers and a red nose. The ghost was quite adorable, but something about the robot made me feel intimidated. Actually, now when I thought about it, there were only three monsters I did not know very well. At least this was just a small celebration, because dealing with a lot of people or monsters made me anxious.

"METTATON!" Papyrus shouted, waving while making his way towards the alluring robot. That was an adjective I never thought I would be using to describe a fancy, humanoid-shape piece of metal.

…Wait…THAT'S METTATON? I thought he was just a box rolling around on a wheel…

"Oh, hello Papyrus darling! How have you been?" The robot responds, flicking his hair out of his face. He had an egotistical air about him, which only made me more uncomfortable in his proximity.

As they were talking, I noticed the ghost peeking out from behind Mettaton, staring at me with curious, blinking eyes. We were both standing behind our personal guardians, having a small staring contest. I managed to give him a small smile, and though he did not give me one in return, something told me that we mutually understood each other. We both did not want to be at this party, that was for sure. It was nice having someone that sympathized with me.

"You two are standing under the mistletoe." When I tuned myself back into Papyrus and Mettaton's conversation, that was the first thing I heard, causing my heart to nearly hit the floor.

"HUH?! REALLY?!" Papyrus tries to look for the mistletoe, all in the wrong directions.

"Look behind you, sugar skull."

Papyrus looks behind him, and I look above. Surely enough, there was the mistletoe, hanging there like it was teasing us. Wait a minute, how the heck did that get there?! I was literally behind him the whole time! Did someone decide to pull a prank on us? Speaking of pranks, a certain skeleton was missing from the scene.

Sans, you cheeky little prankster!

"Better get those lips puckering you two. People have been dying to see some romantic action." Mettaton pointed at us with his leg, waving his foot at us.

Papyrus and I were staring at each other, jaws agape and eyes wide open. We both began to blush brightly as we shifted our gazes from the mistletoe, then back to each other. My palms were shaking, along with Papyrus's. I was not going to be making the first move, and it seemed that he did not want to step up either. We just stared at each other, eye-to-eye socket; my heart pounding so loudly, that it could be heard echoing throughout the cosmos, even though space was a vacuum. I could see orange perspiration forming on Papyrus's forehead, as he began to slowly lean in. Since I did not want to disappoint him, I leaned forward as well, bracing myself.

My soft lips touch against something hard, sending an electric shock down my spine. Did…I just have my first kiss with a skeleton? I did not imagine something like this to ever happen in my entire life, but here I was, lip-to-teeth with Papyrus. It was impossible to explain the complex feelings swarming in the pit of my stomach, but I could not keep my eyes closed forever. I slowly opened my eyelids. What I saw was completely unexpected; there was Sans's head right in between my lips and Papyrus's teeth. He was standing on a stool, right in the middle of us, shielding me from Papyrus's skeleton kiss.

"'sup guys. did you miss me that much?"

Both Papyrus and I simultaneously jumped back. Sans snickered at us, his eye sockets smiling.  
I knew he was responsible for this!

"S-S-SANNNNSSSS! OH MY GOD!" Papyrus's face flushed an even deeper shade of orange. We both cover our faces with our hands in embarrassment, refusing to look in each other's eyes.

"I knew you nerds had a thing for each other!" Undyne's laughter boomed throughout the room.

I felt myself beginning to shrink like Alice from Alice in Wonderland. My shoulders began curling inward; the muscles in my body became tight and tense.

"It was written in the stars that you two were destined to be sweethearts. I could see sparks flying when your eyes locked, darlings! How adorably romantic!"

Could things possibly become even more embarrassing than they are now? I felt like hiding in a closet and never coming out. Why was everything happening to me?

From the stairway, I could hear hurried foot steps making their way downstairs, catching the attention of Papyrus and Sans. A young, middle-school aged child, wearing a red and green striped Christmas sweater came our way, his arms extended.

"Uncles!" The child said, smiling at the skeleton brothers.

"Frisk!" Both Papyrus and Sans exclaimed. Papyrus bent over to hug the child, and Sans stepped off the stool to join them.

I observed the child, the blood from my face beginning to drain. I had to resist the urge to clutch my head; a headache had struck me hard, making me feel dizzy and sick to my stomach. Before I knew it, everything around the room began fading…

….

….

….

"Call for help, I dare you!"

"Cry into the darkness!"

….

….

….

"See what good it does you!"

….  
….

….

"Help…"

….

….

….

"…But nobody came…"

….

….

….

"FRISK, THIS IS OUR NEW FRIEND, [PROTAG]!

I snapped back into reality upon hearing Papyrus mention my name. Sans must have noticed what had just happened, since he stared at me, his signature smile turning into a frown for a brief moment. These visions were only beginning to double in intensity.

It felt like I knew the young ambassador of monsters, though I could not remember when I first met them. According to the intense expression they gave to me, we had to be on the same page. Sans's eye sockets focused on me, then the child, and then back on me. Papyrus was oblivious to what was going on, but Sans, Frisk, and I were functioning on a similar wavelength.

"Nice to see you again." Frisk said, giving me a cheerful smile. They were behaving like I was a distant friend of theirs.

Even the name Frisk sounded familiar. It was not the most common human name, so I knew that I could not be thinking of another Frisk. In my chest, I felt something tingling and squirming. Looking at the child, I noticed something in the middle of their chest glowing red.

"[PROTAG], YOUR CHEST…" Papyrus's touched his finger right on my heart.

A gasp escaped my mouth when I noticed my chest glowing as well. My soul was pulsating, giving off a colored light. In a synchronized rhythm, my soul would pulsate along with Frisk's red soul. That was when I remembered reading a book in the library about human souls. Though it was not a very common phenomenon, when a human feels some intense emotion, or when two human souls connect with each other, the soul or souls might begin to glow. I stared at both Sans and Papyrus, not knowing how to react. Papyrus was both surprised and amused by the sight, while Sans had a blank, emotionless gaze fixated my glowing soul. Alphys and Undyne had gotten up from the couch to see what everyone else was looking at, making me anxious.

"Whoa, that's so COOL! How're they doing that?!" Undyne practically yelled, not having an indoor voice as per usual.

"I-I'm not q-quite sure…" Alphys whispered. "M-maybe their souls are…c-communicating s-somehow?"

"No way! Why can't monsters do that?!" Undyne scowled, crossing her arms.

"WOWIE, HUMANS SURE HAVE A LOT OF SECRETS!" Papyrus was joyful and giddy as always, clapping his hands in amusement.

"Here we are, witnessing the dancing between two souls! What a marvelous scene!" Mettaton made some dramatic poses.

Eventually our souls stopped glowing, leaving all the monsters (except Toriel, since she was in the kitchen, and Sans) in a state of bewilderment. I stared at Sans anxiously, looking for an explanation, but none was given. He only blankly stared back at me and the child, just as I had expected.

"Alright, everyone! Dinner is ready! Come sit at the table when you are ready!"

Toriel came out of the kitchen, holding on to a pie with purple oven mitts.

"Why is everyone standing around in a circle? Did I miss anything?" She asked, canting her head to the side.

"YOUR MAJESTY! SOMETHING AMAZING HAPPENED BETWEEN THE HUMANS! THEY WERE ALL GLOWY AND…AND…!"

Papyrus was speaking so fast, that it was difficult for everyone else to make out what he was saying. All the attention I was receiving was beginning to worsen my anxiety, to the point where I snuck out of the circle and went out to the porch. The monsters were focused on telling Toriel what had happened, so it was a good chance for me to go outside and calm down. Knowing Papyrus though, he would wonder where I am, though he probably would not be able to find me.  
I sat down on the steps, trying to grasp what had happened back there. My whole body was shaking from having everyone's eyes on me. I hated being in the spotlight, and that incident was enough to pump my anxiety into overdrive.

Letting out a small sigh, I focused on the scene around me. There were monster kids playing outside in the snow across the street, building snowmen and snow forts. Winter dust fell from the sky, bringing Christmas Eve's blessings with it. I stuck my tongue out, catching a snowflake, and letting it melt on my tongue. That made me remember the time Papyrus, Sans, and I went skating on the large pond. While we danced together, Papyrus caught a snowflake on his orange plasma tongue. The thought made me smile. That was one of the best moments in my life, to be honest.

"hey, pal, you feeling okay?"

I was startled by San's deep voice. Looking to my right, I saw the short skeleton, having a smoke while casually leaning against the porch railing.

"I…could be a lot better…" I told him honestly, letting out another sigh.

There was a brief silence between us as he exhaled, smoke seeping through his teeth, then vanishing in the air.

"you're really wanting answers, i know you are. listen kid, i'm not gonna hide it from you anymore."

"Y-you said that many times before, Sans…give it a rest."

I was not in the mood for any more mind games, especially with the way I was feeling at the moment. The skeleton sighed, then snapped his fingers, making the cigarette vanish in blue magic. He took a seat next to me on the step. I stared down at the other steps, not wanting to make eye contact with his void sockets.

"i know i've been hiding things from you, but i'm being serious. do you want to know the truth, or not?"

I looked at him with a pleading expression.

"actually, i think it'll be best if i just showed you."

I was expecting him to tell me something, not show me something. I was going to brush it off as another one of his mind tricks, but he seemed dead serious this time around.

"Show me? What do you mean by that?"

"i'm gonna take you to the underground so you can see for yourself."

I did not quite understand what he was getting at, but if showing me would get the truth out of him, then I would do it.

"let's just enjoy the rest of the holiday for now, alright? keep your chin up." Sans winked, giving me a smile.

I responded with a nod and slight smile. With that, we got up from the step, joining the other monsters for dinner. It was hilarious watching Toriel and Sans crack puns with each other, making Papyrus lose his mind. My mood greatly improved after that.

Hours later, Papyrus and I were in the kitchen, baking cookies for "Santa Clause". Papyrus enjoyed being with me every time I cooked, and was also quite the helper too. He would help me add the ingredients to the mixing bowl, or measure things for me. We both made an excellent culinary team.

"ARE THEY READY YET?!" Papyrus asked, eagerly bouncing.

"No, Papyrus. I haven't even put them in the oven." I giggled, opening the oven with one hand, then pushing the tray in.

"WILL THEY BE DONE SOON?!"

"In a few minutes, Papy! You can help me decorate them when they cool, okay?"

"OKAY!"

Papyrus had already started to clean, wiping down the areas that were covered in flour and egg. Baking was a messy affair, but Papyrus was able to make anything spotless. Once the cookies were finished baking and cooking, he set up the table, putting different candies in separate bowls and some wax paper down.

We frosted the sugar cookies, careful not to overflow them with royal icing. After that, we added the sprinkles and candies. Papyrus would watch every move I made, then mimicked exactly what I did. Once we finished decorating our delicious treats, we both proudly admired our hard work. "Santa", or should I say, "Sansa", would absolutely love these.

"Okay, now we're ready for Santa, right Pap-" I notice candy and icing on the tall skeleton's teeth. His eye sockets were turned away from me, and his hands were behind his back. Though he was desperately trying to behave calmly, his shifting sockets gave it away.

"You stole a cookie, didn't you?" I asked, chuckling at his antics. I put my hands on my hips, pretending to seem angry, but my smile gave it away. He flinches, then takes a nearby napkin, wiping away the evidence.

"U-UMM, (AHEM), N-NO, WHY WOULD YOU THINK THAT?! ONLY SANS WOULD ATTEMPT SOMETHING SO…SO SINFUL!" Papyrus nervously laughed, sweat forming on his cheeks and forehead. Tangerine blush spread across his entire ivory face.

Cookie thief confirmed!

This was often something that happened when we cooked together. Something would end up going missing, and it would either be because of Papyrus, Sans, or sometimes both brothers. Sans would not even attempt to hide it one bit though, unlike Papyrus, who would deny it until the very end. They seemed to enjoy whatever I baked or cooked. Culinary class payed off.

"You're a silly skeleton." I said, reaching out to pinch his cheekbone, making him blush even harder. He began twiddling his fingers, looking at me with a sheepish grin.

I looked at the clock on the stove, realizing that it was almost eleven at night! We were so into our cookie making, that time just flew by!

"Oh, would you look at the time! It's time for a certain someboney to go to bed!" I said, pointing at the stove's clock. Papyrus's shoulders slumped, his bottom jaw quivering.

"B-BUT WE WERE HAVING SO MUCH FUN! I DON'T WANT IT TO END, MY VERY SPECIAL HUMAN FRIEND!" He whined, staring at me with puppy dog…eye sockets?

"Good verteboys have to go to bed, so Santa can come!" I said, petting him on the shoulder. This seemed to make him happier.

"yeah bro, and it's time for me to read you 'Peek-a-boo with Fluffy Bunny'."

Sans was standing in the doorway of the kitchen, holding on to the book. I hoped that he was able to stay awake long enough to read it, since I still had a few more presents to wrap.

"OH GOODIE! I CAN'T WAIT FOR MY BEDTIME STORY!" Papyrus runs up to Sans, picking him up and slinging him on his shoulder like a ragdoll.

"LET'S GO, SANS!"

Papyrus bolts out of the kitchen with Sans, leaving me alone to clean up and put the extra cookies away. They would all most likely be gone in the middle of the night, because of a certain sleepwalker, but still, they could not be left out. I put three cookies on a plate, then poured a glass of milk, putting it on a table next to the spaghetti Christmas tree (yes, there were spaghetti noodles hanging off the branches).

After straightening up the kitchen, I quickly ran upstairs to get some wrapping paper, scissors, tape, and the presents. I wrapped up the gifts, then set them under the tree with the rest.

That was when something caught my eye. Under the tree were presents mostly for Papyrus, but amongst his presents was one, labelled:

To: [Protag]  
From: Papyrus & Sans  
Note: WE LOVE YOU, HUMAN! :DDDDD  
A THOUSAND PAPYRUS HUGS FOR YOU!  
-FROM THE GREAT PAPYRUS!  
merry christmas, pal. never stop being yourself. ;)  
-from, you snow who. ;)  
-SAAAANNNSSSS! :0000 ARE YOU SERIOUS?!  
-c'mon, bro, throw me a bone here.  
-OH MY GOD, SANS! YOU'RE RUINING THE SENTIMENTAL VALUE OF THIS NOTE!  
-chill out, pap, no need to lose your cool. ;)  
-SANS WOULD YOU JU-  
(Due to the lack of room, the note ends there.)

I could feel my soul twirling in my chest, sending butterflies throughout my whole entire body.

I loved these two marshmarrows so much.

"HUMAN! HUMAN! WAKE UP! IT'S CHRISTMAS!"

The first thing I woke up to was an eager Papyrus shaking me.

"Ah, Papyrus! I'm awake!" I exclaimed.

He stopped shaking me, but before my head could stop spinning, he uncovered me, slid his hands under me, then lifted me up, running down the stairs while carrying me like a princess. He sat me down in front of the tree, next to Sans. Papyrus sat right next to me with his legs crossed, wrapping a boney arm around my shoulder.

"ALRIGHT SANS! BRING OUT THE PRESENTS!" Papyrus raised his free arm up into the air.

"you got it, bro." Sans gets up from the floor, then starts taking out the presents: six for Papyrus, two for Sans, and one for me. Sans and I let Papyrus start on his presents first, though he already started opening them anyway. The utter joy he had when he opened each present was heartwarming. Tears were flowing from his eye sockets as he held his new figurines.

"OH MY GOD! I-I LOVE MY PRESENTS! THANK YOU SANTA!" He said, weeping joyfully.

After he took a moment to compose himself, he opened the present from Sans. It was a giant plushie of Mettaton in box form. Papyrus's tears started back up again, as he clutched the plushie in a death hug. Sans and I both smiled, exchanging glances with each other.

"SANS! THOUGH YOU'RE A LAZY BONES AND WON'T PICK UP YOUR SOCK WHEN I TELL YOU TO, THIS IS AMAZING! THANK YOU, SANS!" He yelled, and when I say yell, I meant that the natural volume of his voice doubled.

"heh, no problem br-OOF!"

Papyrus suddenly picks up Sans, twirling him around, then giving him a giant embrace. After a few moments of the brothers hugging, he puts Sans down.

Now it was time for the last present…mine. He rips the wrapping paper, then opens the box, revealing the creation I had diligently worked on all last week. Though I was bedridden, I wanted to make Papyrus a gift, so I worked through it. I could not take all the credit though, since Sans helped me gather supplies and carve it when I was in too much pain. What was a better gift than a handmade figurine of The Great Papyrus himself?

"H-HUMAN?! Y-YOU TOOK THE TIME TO MAKE THIS FOR ME?!" Papyrus carefully took out the carved figurine, observing it from all sides, touching a finger on each detail.

Before a word could escape my mouth, I was pulled into a giant hug, and was smothered in skeleton nuzzles.

"YOU'RE THE BEST SPECIAL HUMAN FRIEND I COULD EVER ASK FOR!" He exclaimed, still nuzzling me.

"Ahaha, P-Papyrus! T-t-that tickles!" I was crying from laughter as the skeleton continued nuzzling, "nyeh heh heh"ing as he did so. After nuzzling me for some time, he gave me a skeleton kiss on the forehead, lingering there for a few minutes. Papyrus had been in a very affectionate mood lately, though I did not mind one bit.

It was now Sans's turn to open his presents. He opened both mine and Papyrus's in one shot, then clutched them both, the perpetual grin on his face widening. It seemed that he was in his glory, which was rare for him.

"heh, you guys know me so well. thanks a whole bunch." Sans said. He puts his large ketchup bottle and socks down to join us in one, large group hug. Being hugged by these two at once made my soul tingle.

"ARE YOU GOING TO OPEN YOUR PRESENTS!?"

"Ah, yes! Of course I am!" I excitedly pulled the present from Papyrus and Sans closer to me. They both watched in anticipation as I tore apart the wrapping paper. When I opened the box, my mouth dropped: inside was a long, green scarf with my name embroidered on it. Words could not accurately describe how happy I felt. The scarf felt silky in my hands, reminding me of a soft little kitten.

"T-this is beautiful you guys…but why?"

"what do you mean by why? you're a great pal to us."

"SANS AND I MADE IT FOR YOU OURSELVES, BECAUSE YOU MEAN A LOT TO US!"

I found myself choking on tears. If it were possibly, I would have been crying rainbows. The two brothers laughed, both hugging me as I cried tears of joy. Papyrus and Sans took the scarf from my hands, wrapping it around my neck. For some reason, the scarf smelled just like Papyrus, or more accurately, spaghetti sauce. Now I had a piece of the brothers everywhere I went. The comforting security of the scarf around my neck filled me with love.

"T-this…is the best Christmas I ever had."

Once again, I was tightly squeezed by the two boney brothers.


	10. Here We Are

There we were, standing before the large, weather beaten door, leading to the empty bowels of the Underground. Never did I imagine being near the ancient entrance, that sealed monster kind's gloomy history. Above the door was the familiar symbol I had seen in my dreams many times before; the Delta Rune, the triangles symbolized the monsters, while the winged circle symbolized an angel or savior. I felt past emotions leaking through the door: melancholy, depression, hopelessness, despair. I did not understand why Sans took me here, or what he wished to show me, but with the green scarf cozily wrapped around my neck, I was filled with determination.

"stay by me at all times, kiddo. it's going to be dark in here." Sans's eye began to glow a cyan light, as he summoned a ball of magic in his palm.

The door opened with a loud, drawn-out creak. I followed Sans inside, as he guided me with his magical light, nervously clutching on to my scarf, silently whispering prayers for safety. It was hard to see what was ahead of us, but I knew that we had to be walking down a grey corridor. The only thing I could hear as we continued walking was the haunting echoes of our footsteps, and distant, eerie moaning from the empty underground. It had felt like forever, walking through what felt like an endless amount of grey corridors, but eventually, we made it to a different room. As we passed through it, I noticed a throne, and flowers beneath my feet. Though it was difficult to see the color, the smell was distinctive. They had to have been the golden flowers in my dreams.

"we're getting close. keep it up."

Just before we were almost out of the room, a sudden pain shot through my spine, making me collapse on to the floor. I clenched my jaw, forcing myself to get up, and luckily, I was able to. Sans turned around, an alarmed expression plastered on his face.

"D-don't worry. I'm alright." I said, dusting myself off.

Sans's eye sockets became void, his mouth turning into a full frown. Again, we pressed forward in silence, not uttering another word to each other. We eventually came to some steps. Sans grabbed ahold of my hand, guiding me down the stairway. I was thankful that he was with me, since the sensations in my body were only beginning to worsen. If it were not for his assistance, I would have most likely fallen down them. That was the last thing I needed, after what had happened before.

"here we are." Sans solemnly whispered.

I continued following Sans, my heart almost making its way up to my throat when I noticed some objects illuminated by his magical light. In a horizontal row were opened caskets, each with a name and a heart on them, representing a soul. Sans came to an abrupt stop, shining his hand over one of the coffins, as if he were Death, pointing me to my grave.

"does this look familiar?"

Taking a moment to recover from my initial shock, I examined the open casket.

This coffin…had my name on it…  
Inside, were mummy wrappings…  
For some reason, I remembered being wrapped in these…  
The thought creeped me out….

Suddenly, a violent shockwave was sent through my spine again, causing me to cry out on pain. All I could see was light taking up my vision. I was afraid, but before completely losing all my senses, I felt Sans giving my hand a tight squeeze.

…..

…..

...

…

You remembered searching for mushrooms for your mother. You were supposed to be helping her with a dish, but suddenly found yourself lost in Mt. Ebott. Being the curious child you were, you explored the mountain, not knowing what you were getting myself into. As a result, you ended up falling down, losing consciousness, later to find yourself lying on a bed of golden flowers.

…..

…..

"Howdy! I'm Flowey! Flowey the Flower!"

"You're new to the underground, aren'tcha?"

"Golly, you must be so lost and confused down here!"

"Don't worry, little old me will teach you how things work around here!"

…..

…..

A golden flower was talking to you. He seemed to be friendly.

…...

…

"See that heart right there? That's your SOUL, the very essence of your existence. As you gain more LVL, or love, your SOUL becomes stronger!"

"These friendliness pellets will help you!"

"Make sure you catch them all, friend!"

…..

You reached out to catch the friendliness pellets, only for them to strike you in the soul, causing it to squirm in pain. That vile weed lied to you!

…

"YOU IDIOT! DON'T YOU GET IT? DOWN HERE, IT'S KILL OR BE KILLED!"

You were surrounded by "friendliness" pellets.

"NOW DIE!"

The evil flower menacingly laughed as the pellets came closer to you, trapping you in the middle. You braced yourself for death, hoping it would be over soon.

…

…

…But you were still alive…

…

"What a vile little creature, torturing a poor, innocent youth. You must have fallen down here recently. It is alright, my child, I will guide you safely through the Ruins."

…..

A goat-like monster wearing a purple gown took you by the hand, guiding you through the obstacles found in the Ruins. She eventually leads you into a room, telling you to stay there until she got back, giving you a cell phone to contact her.

"I will not be long, my child. Just stay here, and if you need me, please do call."

Before she leaves the room completely, she turns back around.

"Oh, I almost forgot…."

"Do you prefer cinnamon, or butterscotch?"

….

You told her cinnamon.

….

"Cinnamon it is then!"

….

She seemed a little nervous.

….

"I know you like cinnamon, my child, but you don't dislike butterscotch, do you?"

"Would you turn up your nose if you saw it on your plate?"

….

You told her that you did not mind. She seemed happy with your response.

"You must be wondering why I am asking you these questions."

"You will see very soon, my child."

….

….

….

"Why would you want to leave? This is your new home now. Do you not like the room I provided for you?"

…..

…..

"Ah, I see. You have a family back on the surface. It would not be fair for me to keep you from them.

….

It seemed like she was a little disheartened.

….

"Before you leave, I will pack you a slice of butterscotch cinnamon pie. It will be a challenging journey, but I understand why you must leave me. Stay safe, my child."

The goat mother embraces you, not wanting to let you go. You did not want to let go either, but you could not stay in the underground forever.

Being hugged by the goat mother filled you with determination.

…..

"It's…so cold".

The doors of the ruins opened, a snowy breeze leaking through the crack, revealing a snowy, pine tree forest. You ran as fast as you could, trying to avoid incoming monsters. You did not want to battle, but they kept coming toward you, hitting you with their magical attacks, but you continued forward, the snow crunching with every step you took. Why was everyone attacking you? What did they want? You were just a child, trying to survive the cruel, unfair world around you.

It did not help that some evil forces were following closely behind, watching your every move.

But you were still determined.

…..

After barely surviving the attacks from the Royal Guard, you were now in some dimly lit, dark cavern, with many blue flowers all over the place. Though the cavern was beautiful with its blue hues, sparkling cyan rivers, and mysterious flowers, sorrow thickly hung in the air.

As you walked by the echo flowers, they spoke to you, telling you the forlorn history of the monster race. Hearing the various voices of monsters from the echo flowers, speaking their wishes and dreams, made your heart want to shatter.

There was no turning back though; you had to stay determined.

….

The life force in your body was beginning to fade, after having to endure more relentless monster attacks. You were wondering how much longer your journey would be. As much as you wanted to make peace with the monsters, it seemed that no matter how kind you were, they still continued their attacks. After leaving the cavern, you found yourself in an arid region with reddish-orange dirt and lava below. You limped forward, weakly, but your life force began draining from you.

…...

You were not determined enough…..

…..

…..

You collapsed onto the dirt.  
…..

…..

…..

You now found yourself in some strange, partially organic, partially mechanic creature, feeling like something was being sucked out of you. The sensation did not feel painful, but it was a little unpleasant. It was also quite cramped in there, not allowing you to move at all. Even when you tried to move, there was nothing to move, as if you did not have any limbs. You did not understand what was happening, but it scared you.

"….Huh….?"

…You could hear someone desperately calling out for help…

…..

...But you could not move…

…..

…But maybe…just maybe, you could save them somehow?

You sent down your prayers, hoping for the person to receive them.

….Love, freedom, relief, mercy, kindness, luck, create, success….

….Kindness…

….Suddenly, you were free from the creature…but you were not alone…

Five different colored souls joined you: yellow, orange, blue, light blue, and purple. Together, you encircled the red soul, sending them good wishes.

"You can do it!"

"Don't give up!"

"We believe in you!"

"Save the world!"

You all cheered together.

Due to your cheering, the red soul became powerful, while the hideous abomination's defense completely dropped to zero.

The red soul was determined, avoiding the creature's unrelenting attacks. It fought until the creature's HP dropped to zero. The long battle had finally ended.

…Or so you thought…

"You IDIOT!"

The creature unleashed a series of attacks on the crimson soul, over and over again, constantly reloading save files. Its murderous cackle echoed throughout the darkness, as it summoned bullets to circle around the red soul.

"Hee hee hee."

"Did you REALLY think…"

"You could defeat me?!"

"I am the GOD of this world."

"And YOU?"

"You're HOPELESS."

"Hopeless and alone…"

"Golly, that's right."

"Your WORTHLESS friends…"

"…can't save you now."

"Call for help, I dare you!"

"Cry into the darkness!"

"Mommy! Daddy! Somebody help!"

"See what good it does you!"

….

….

You heard the red soul calling out for help again…

….

….

"…But nobody came…"

"Boy! What a shame!"

"Nobody else is gonna get to see you DIE!"

….

You noticed the owner of the red soul, the eighth human, shivering and crying as he stared at the hideous flower beast. The child, Frisk, appeared on the verge of giving up, kneeling on the ground, preparing for the incoming bullets.

….NO…it was not going to end this way. You would not allow it!

The bullets made their way toward the child, touching his soul, but instead of killing them, they were restored to full health.

"What?"

"How'd you?"

"Well…I'll just."

LOAD FAILED

Serves you right, you terrible creature!

"Wh…"

"Where are my powers!?"

The souls, including you, appeared in front of the beast.

"The souls…?"

"What are they doing?"

You and the other souls revolted against the creature, attacking him. His whole body flashed different colors as you and the five other souls circled around him, gradually becoming faster, and he was screaming in agony.

"NO! NO!"

"YOU CAN'T DO THAT!"

"YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO OBEY ME!"

"STOP! STOP IT!"

"STOOOOOPPPP!"

…..

The visions ended, but I was no longer in the coffin room with Sans anymore. I was surrounded by endless light, floating like there was no gravity. In the middle of my chest, my soul was beginning to pulsate, giving off a green hue. It was beckoning me to move forward, so that was what I did. A few feet away stood Sans, his back turned away from me. I floated my way over to him, trying to call out his name, but there was only silence.

"countless time lines, i've seen you die."

When Sans spoke, I could see images flashing behind him, as if there were television screens playing. One of the images or movies showed me, running away from my pursuer that certain day I walked home from college. Suddenly, the conversations I had with Sans came flooding back to me.

(i'll tell it to you straight, kiddo. do you remember that fire on the news?)

….

(the people who were following you also caused that fire.)

...

(do you believe in creatures that have no souls? creatures entirely made of darkness and devoid of emotion?)

…..

That was when I saw them, chasing me in the movie. Whatever they were, they were not human nor monster. Their features were entirely concealed by darkness, but I knew that they could only be one thing…

…I…did not want to say the word though…

The movies showed much different outcomes than what actually happened. In the first movie, I saw my own body lifelessly slumped against my apartment door. I did not have any kind of injury on me, but my soul was missing. Papyrus and Sans were there, observing my body, ectoplasm tears streaming down their sockets. Though I could not hear what they were saying, Papyrus's frantic body motions spoke for themselves. He seemed angry, confused, and heartbroken all at once.

In the second movie, I was shown in the mall, running away from more shadow creatures. They were right behind my back as I ran, not losing sight of me. When I reached the stairs, I noticed myself slip, tumbling down them. As I was getting up, trying to recover, a creature struck me in the back of my head, rendering me unconscious. It stuck its hand into my chest, retrieving my green soul, then vanished. Sans came right after, but was too late to save me. Sans kneeled down by my body, his head down, and cyan-colored tears dripping from his eye sockets. I could almost hear them dripping on the tiled floor…

….

"i tried to remind myself not to get attached."

"because getting too attached to people who you will only lose."

"just brings more pain in the long run."

"however, i couldn't keep myself from caring about you."

….

"i was the one who saved you from the soulless creatures."

"all because i didn't want to see you die again."

….

(Sans turned around)

….

"heh, it's a mystery how love works."

"after feeling so numb for all those lonely years."

"after reliving these time lines, again and again."

….

"i know this all might be confusing to you."

"but you have something to fulfill in this time line."

"now that you know everything."

"your fate is sealed."

….

….

"you died in the Underground, but your determination resurrected you."

….

….

"[Protag]…you are the green soul."


	11. Surrounded By Darkness

DO NOT READ END NOTES IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THIS YET!

Sorry for the capslock. I just want to make sure you see this. ;w;  
The end notes are spoilers!

(I sure hope there are no mistakes. I proof-read the heck out of this...)

….

Those words caused my soul to suddenly shatter into a million fragments as they left the skeleton's mouth. After leaving the Underground as a fourteen-year-old six years ago, all my memories were left behind with my gauze bandages. Many of my questions were answered, but there were still many more: why did I not remember my parents? Why was I an orphan for so long? Why did these strange memories flood back to me after meeting, no, reuniting with Papyrus and Sans in this timeline? The other children and I, after climbing out of the Underground, had no other place to go but the orphanage. My memories of that place were still shrouded in fog, but I recalled feeling hopeless, alone, and unwanted. Luckily for me, I was adopted into a loving family, so I guess things could have been worse. Many children misunderstood my social anxiety, though, and that would be a problem more often than not. There was no point in digging more into my past at the moment. What Sans just told me, about who I was, was enough for today.

I tried looking at the other screens that were playing the current timeline. Some of them had all three of us spending time together, like that day we went skating, the Christmas festival, Toriel's party, and the very first day I met Papyrus in the market. The other screens were covered in static so I could not make out the images, but something told me that they were very important. They must have been upcoming events of this timeline.

"Sans..." My voice was soft, almost below a whisper.

Suddenly, I feel tremoring under my feet as if there was an earthquake. I looked down, noticing a large crack beginning to spread. As anyone would in a situation like this, I panicked, but my body was immobile like a statue. Sans's eye socket lit cyan, his forehead perspiring blue sweat droplets. He sprinted for me, clutching on to my hand as tight as possible, to the point where it almost hurt. I was trying hard to ask Sans what was going on, but my lips were cemented shut in fear. Internally, I was screaming, desperately wanting this to end.

"[protag], hang on tight!" I heard Sans for the very first time shouting at me.

The crack spread throughout the whole entire room of light, before shattering into fragments like broken glass. Feeling nothing supporting my feet, I began to frantically shout out at Sans, begging for him to not let me go. Sans had a blue aura around him that kept himself from plummeting into the darkness surrounding us. His brows were furrowed, and his teeth were barred as he struggled to hold on. My damp palm was beginning to weaken his grip, so he grasped onto my wrist with his other hand.

"Please! Don't let me go, Sans!"

"i'm trying hard not to, kid!"

Sans grunts, trying to pull us both out of the darkness, but the weight of my body put a lot of strain on his arms. His eye was burned brightly, leaving behind a stream of blue plasma.

"i gotcha, just a little m-" Sans and I gasped as crimson-colored magic struck our hands. The sharp pain causes Sans to lose his grip, leaving me to descent into the darkness.

"Sans!" My voice echoed.

"[p-protag]!" Sans's panicked voice called back to me.

Our hands were extended to each other, but I had already fallen too far, and the darkness was already consuming me. Before being completely emerged into darkness, I saw Sans's ivory face, blue tears dripping from his eye sockets, leaving a twinkling trail to me.

…..

…..

…..

"Arg…where the heck am I?"

I groaned, lifting myself up. My head was pounding like a drum from all the physical damage my body had been going through. Rubbing my eyes, I looked around me, but there was nothing much to see except for more darkness.

That was what I thought at first.

Red eyes started appearing all around me, piercing through the darkness and into the fabric of my entire being. They were all intensely focused on every movement I made, noticing every little quiver my nearly motionless body made. It seemed that they relished in my fear, and I was doing a good job providing them what they wanted.

Oh my god, what am I going to do? Sans is not here, and now I have creatures all around me.

Just when I thought it could not become any worse, my ears picked up on a sound…footsteps. There were footsteps slowly making their way towards me, echoing with each steps, announcing an ominous presence.

(Click…clack…)

(Hee hee hee…)

A menacing giggle joined in with the footsteps; such an unpleasant combination. Though I wanted to deny it, I heard this voice somewhere before. The tone of the voice sounded like it belonged to a child, but something was wrong with it. When most people think about children, the image of a perfect angel comes to their mind. This voice had a sinister, cold and calculating feeling to it, one that made my stomach turn.

"How long do you plan on running, you worthless coward?"

I could not see who was speaking to me, but their sinister vibes could be felt from where I was standing.

(Click…clack…)

"W-who…who's there!? W-what do you want?!" I tried to make my voice sound assertive, but it sounded shaky instead.

(Click…clack…)

"Are you not getting the picture? It should be very clear what I want from you."

The bloodthirsty eyes made their way closer to me.

"Stay back!" My voice was still weak. They could sense my fear, and were feeding off it. What a weak person I was…

(Click…clack…)

"Stop being a coward and accept your fate already. It's not like your life has any meaning to this world. You're better off dead."

The beady eyes of the creatures came even closer to me. I could almost feel their breath down my neck, panting hungrily, wanting to chomp down on my flesh. The terror became too much to bear; I crouched down, shielding my head with my arms. Claws were swiping at me, and teeth were gnawing down on my arms.

(Click…clack…)

"Someone please save me!"

….

….

…But no one came…

A heart-wrenching laugh rang in my ears, making me want to retch up the breakfast Papyrus lovingly made for me.

"Did you really think calling for help would do you any good? What a naïve little creature you are."

(Click…clack…)

This was it. This was how my story ended. I was not going to see my friends ever again. Maybe this was what Sans meant by having my fate sealed? Perhaps…I was meant to die by these terrifying nightmares.

…No…it cannot end here. I made so many friends during my stay with the skeleton brothers, that letting myself die here would be a waste. I could not just let my life go down the drain. That would be such a burden on so many peoples' hearts. I had to keep living, for everyone, for Papyrus, for…myself!

Besides…I made a promise.

"No…"

"No!"

"It won't end like this!"

Power begins surging through my veins, giving me boundless energy. I spread my feet apart, raise my chest, then clench my fists in front of me, preparing for any oncoming attack. My soul began to radiate, giving off an emerald-colored hue that spread around my whole body, creating a shield. The creatures back away, intimidated by my soul's determination.

"You will not take me down that easily!" My voice became stronger than ever, not even having a trace of hesitation. There was a laugh in the darkness, mocking me, but that did not make me back down.

"Do you truly think that you have a choice? Your antics amuse me, but you're getting in my way. Run all you want to, [Protag]. In the end, your soul will belong to me."

The unseen presence giggled at me. Who did this person think I was…a fool?

"I'm not going down without struggling first!"

"So be it. Continue to be stubborn, but in the end, I will win this little game. You're nothing but one measly soul, going up against the ultimate demon themselves. I will destroy everything…"

...

(Click…clack…)

….

(Click…clack…)

….

"Starting with you."

All around me, the darkness began flashing red, as a child came towards me. The child eerily resembled Frisk, with their brown, short hair up to their face, and green shirt with a single yellow stripe. They came toward me with repulsive, decomposing eye sockets and an open, toothless orifice, looking like a hideous breathing corpse. I braced myself for the impact, knowing that the demon would attack me at any moment. Before they could get any closer, the darkness began cracking under my feet, shattering into black shards.

I felt myself falling into oblivion.

But I had determination.

….

…..

…..

My eyes opened, revealing the ceiling of the skeleton brothers' living room. It seemed that Sans somehow carried me out of the Underground, or most likely used teleportation, since it would be difficult for him to carry me home. While I was going through my past life, I must have blacked out, since I did not remember anything. I was still feeling odd after all the memories I went through, and my stomach was a little nauseated.

From the kitchen, I heard boots shuffling loudly against tile floor. My heart fluttered, for I knew who was in there. Poor Papyrus must have been feeling a little lonely while we were gone. He did not seem to like it when Sans and I left without him.

Groaning, I lifted myself up, and a small bag of ice fell from my forehead. Did I catch a fever? My head did feel warm, but it was hard to take my own temperature. Carefully, I rose from the couch, heading for the kitchen. I peeked in, noticing Papyrus by the stove, stirring what appeared to be spaghetti soup. His gaze seemed so focused on the soup, that I was able to sneak in without being detected.

"Hey…Papy-"

Before I could say the rest of his name, the lanky skeleton swiftly turns his head, his skeleton brows furrowing. His sockets, normally like the starless night sky, briefly flickered orange, making me instinctively step back. Papyrus, the generally jovial skeleton, revealed a different mask I never expected to see, nor did I ever want to.

"WHERE HAVE YOU AND SANS BEEN!? I WAS WORRIED SICK ABOUT YOU TWO! AND WHAT ARE YOU DOING UP!? LAY BACK DOWN AT ONCE BEFORE YOU HARM YOURSELF ANYMORE! JEEZ, YOU NEED TO TAKE BETTER CARE OF YOURSELF!" He yelled, practically blowing the roof off the house. His voice was so jarring, that I almost cowered in fright.

"Papyrus…what's going on? You seem upset…" I attempted to pet his arm reassuringly, but he swiftly moves his arm away from me. I covered my face with my hands, stepping away from Papyrus, afraid that he would accidently hit me.

"OF COURSE, I AM UPSET! YOU AND SANS KEEP GOING OFF WITHOUT ME! THEN EVERY TIME I ASK WHERE YOU GUYS WENT, HE DOESN'T TELL ME ANYTHING! WHAT IS WITH THE SECRET KEEPING?! AND NOW YOU'RE SICK AGAIN! WHY MUST HUMANS BE SO FRAGILE?!" He ranted, frantically raising his arms about. I had seen Papyrus upset before, but this kind of anger seemed completely out of character for him. What had gotten into him?

"Whoa! Papyrus…please calm down…" I speak calmly though I truthfully wanted to sprint out of there instead. With my hands, I make rising and falling motions, trying to tell him to lower his temper.

"HOW COULD I STAY CALM WHEN YOU'RE STILL HIDING THINGS FROM ME!? I THOUGHT WE HAD AN OPEN RELATIONSHIP! WHERE DID YOU GUYS GO!? TELL ME THE TRUTH, HUMAN!"

Darn…nothing seemed to be working. The tangerine flush on his cheekbones spread to his entire ivory face, and the stare he gave me made my knees wobbly.

"We…were at Grillby's…"

I lied to him though he could see right through me. With the way I was avoiding his gaze, shuffling my feet, and biting my fingertips; it was obvious enough even for the normally oblivious skeleton to notice.

"I…thought you could be open with me human…why're you being so reluctant?!" He puts his arms on his hips, letting a heavy sigh escape his mouth, rattling his rib cage.

"Human…aren't we supposed to be close?" Papyrus finally calmed down, staring at me with somber eye sockets. They were blinking rapidly, which I recognized to be the skeleton equivalent of holding back tears.

"Papyrus…it's very complicated." That felt terrible to say, but it was the truth. How could have I explained to Papyrus that I was the green soul? I barely even understood what that meant, though I knew fate had something for me.

A gasp escaped my mouth when I looked up at Papyrus. He was clutching his head with one hand, closing his eye sockets and clenching his teeth. Through his teeth, I could hear a small, pained whimper.

"Are you alright?!" I reached out to touch him but then pulled back, afraid that he would move away again.

"AH…NOT TO WORRY HUMAN! I'VE JUST BEEN FEELING A LITTLE…UNDER THE WEATHER!" He smiled, though the corners of his mouth looked strained. Something was wrong, though I knew for sure that he would not tell me anything. For someone who told me to be open and honest with him, he was not practicing what he had been preaching.

"…Are you hiding something…?"

"N-NO! I'M FINE, HUMAN!"

"But…Papyrus…haven't you been waking up a lot lately?"

"I'M NOT A VERY HEAVY SLEEPER! THAT'S NORMAL FOR ME!"

He laughs his signature "nyeh heh heh", but it sounded fake. He was hiding something for sure, but it would probably be good to just let it go for now. Papyrus's head was harder than the rest of his bones. Trying to squeeze information out of him would be a challenging task.

"H-human?!"

Papyrus suddenly grabs me by the shoulders, nearly startling me out of my skin. The gaze he was giving me made it impossible for me not to blush. When I tried shifting my head away, he would only turn it back to him with his hand.

"Y-yes?"

I continue shifting my head away from him, but again, he kept turning my head. This situation was making me feel uncomfortable.

"D-do you…love me?"

Where was that even coming from?

"Of course I do Papyrus, we're friends…"

"I meant…romantically."

I said nothing.

"Aren't we…dating human?"

I said nothing.

"Human…please…say something!"

I said nothing.

"I…told you those special words…"

I still said nothing.

"Will…you say them back to me?"

Deep breath. Deep breath. Deep breath.

"Papyrus…don't you understand?"

"What is there to understand, human?!"

"Humans and monsters…together…that's forbidden. Do you understand how much trouble that will cause?"

This was immensely painful to say, but it was the truth. A monster and human together was unheard of. If Papyrus and I were seen together…then one of us might be…

"LOVE IS LOVE HUMAN! NO MATTER WHAT FORM IT COMES IN! I DON'T CARE IF WE'RE DIFFERENT!"

His grip on my shoulders gradually became tighter.

"Human…do you love me? I wish to know."

I sighed. There was no point in hiding it anymore. I barely hid it anyway. We were already acting like a couple, and everyone could clearly see it. That mistletoe incident at the party only increased our feelings for each other. It was true; I was smitten with the skeleton. The small spark I had for him turned into passionate flames.

"Yes, Papyrus. I do love you…but…"

I gasped as I was pulled into Papyrus's embrace, feeling the ribs through his battle body top against my chest.

"P-Papyrus?!"

He began nuzzling my head with his teeth affectionately, then began to plant skeleton kisses all over my forehead, purring as he did so.

"I want to be with you." Papyrus pulled his skull away, looking at me with the softest, sweetest expression his face could make. Trickling down his eye sockets all the way to his chin were small, tangerine-colored streams.

I found myself unable to talk, feeling warm, fresh tears leaking from my own eyes.

"Can we be the way we were…before…?"

….

….

"Yes, we can…"

A warmth was exchanged between us as both our souls caressed each other, pulsating and glowing in unison…  
My green soul, and his white soul…  
I found myself not wanting this to end…

….

….

….

Surrounded by golden flowers in the lonely field  
Two souls, monster and human, were entwined together by forbidden love  
Fate can be an unforgivingly cruel mistress  
But with some faith  
Maybe the wheel could change direction  
Together, the monster and human  
Were filled with determination

…..

Remember that dream that involved Asriel?  
I have a theory that Chara and Asriel have a connected consciousness.  
Since Asriel was able to somehow contact Reader in their dreams/visions, Chara can as well!

...Have fun sleeping tonight! 3


	12. But He Doesn't Even Have A Nose!

I promised a fluff chapter, so here is a fluff chapter! Just in time for Valentine's Day as well! I hope it's good! ;w;  
My writing feels like it's getting a bit stiff. =_= I also had to proof read this thing eight times...I sure hope everything is okay! ;w;

Enjoy the Valentine's Day chapter!

...

Today was a special day for couples, and no, I am not talking about Valentine's Day either. Papyrus told me about the nose-nuzzling competition, a competition that monster couples would partake in to show how much they loved each other. I did not like the thought of publicly revealing my love for Papyrus, but he begged me to join him, and since I was not heartless, I accepted his request. Everything would be alright, as long as he was by my side.

We were at the Monster Park, a place for monsters to relax and picnic without worry. Most parks were reserved for humans only, but there were a few for monsters to enjoy. This one was quite nice with its playground, fountain of a legendary monster hero, event stage, and multiple walking or biking trails. It must had been beautiful in the summer time when the flowers sprung up and the trees awakened, though the glittering snow everywhere was a spectacle in itself.

The park was crowded today due to the competition, making me feel very uneasy. Whether I imagined it or not, I felt that there were judging eyes on me for being romantically involved with a monster, a skeleton to be exact. I knew that other humans did not like interspecies couples for sure; I wondered if monsters felt the same way?

"OOOOOH YESSSSS! Welcome darlings, to the annual nose nuzzling championship! I am your host, METTATON!" On the stage was Mettaton in his box form, with his legs sticking out, walking around sassily while carrying a mic. Papyrus squealed with excitement upon seeing the "sexy rectangle", just like a fanboy, though imagine that times five.

All the monsters were raising their arms, cheering and whistling widely; some even threw socks in the air. The loudness was beginning to make my heart thump rapidly. One thing I hated just as much as crowds was too much noise, especially if said noise was too loud. Papyrus's reassuring grip on my hand made my pulse slow down slightly, like he was squeezing the anxiety out from my hand. He seemed to know when I was feeling uncomfortable without even looking at me, like he instinctively knew my moods.

"Today, we have seven pairs of sweethearts, all ready for some romantic nuzzling!"-Mettaton points to the two, anthropomorphic dogs. - "Over there, we have the nose nuzzling champions! These sickeningly sweethearts won all previous nose nuzzling competitions and have yet to be beaten! Ladies and gentlemen, give a round of applause to Dogamy and Dogaressa!"

There was more wild cheering and sock throwing. The two dogs were nuzzling each other lovingly, engrossed in each other's presence like they were the only two living creatures on the planet. When Mettaton said that they were "sickeningly sweethearts", he was not exaggerating. Those two could not keep their muzzles off each other. How could we keep up with them?

"Papyrus…are you sure we can do this?" I asked Papyrus, giving him a concerned glance.

" **OF COURSE, MY DEAREST HUMAN! I AM YOUR ONE AND ONLY VERTE-BOYFRIEND! WITH ME ON YOUR SIDE, I WILL ENSURE THAT WE WIN!"** Papyrus winked at me, then gave my hand a squeeze. The confident aura emanating from him was contagious.

"But Papyrus…you don't even have a nose!" I pointed at my nose to emphasize what I was saying.

" **ERM…THAT MAY BE TRUE, BUT I AM POSITIVE THAT WE'LL BE ABLE TO BECOME THE NEW CHAMPIONS! OUR LOVE IS SO STRONG, THAT WE'LL BE ABLE TO CONQUER THIS COMPETITION EASILY!"**

No matter what I would say to the skeleton, he was confident that we would win. If he was going to be that confident, then I should be more optimistic. Papyrus was a handworker, and had a competitive spirit, so maybe we did have the potential to win this competition?

"Our next pair of sweethearts is the strong, warrior fish and the cartoon-loving lizard! They may be opposites of each other, but as they say, opposites do attract! Give it up for Undyne and Alphys!"

The crowd cheered again, but my gaze was deeply focused on Papyrus. In fact, I failed to notice that Mettaton had announced all the other contestants: Grillby's daughter and a purple monster girl, royal guard one and two, and Mr. Snowdrake and Mrs. Snowdrake.

"…And last but not least…"

My thoughts snapped back into the present. I was not prepared for this!

"Look what we have here, darlings, new romance budding before our very eyes! Everyone give your applause to Papyrus and his human sweetheart!"

Everyone gasped in surprise at first, but then broke out into intense cheering and clapping. It seemed that monsters approved of interspecies romance after all! They did have a human ambassador, so maybe it was not too out of place for a human and monster to date. Humans did not feel the same way unfortunately.

"Papyrus…I'm feeling very uncomfortable…." I looked up at the skeleton, who smiled down at me, petting me on the head.

" **IT'S OKAY HUMAN, I'M RIGHT HERE! NO NEED TO WORRY, ALRIGHT?!"**

"O-okay…"

Papyrus squeezed on to my hand a second time.

"Now to start this competition! On your mark…." Mettaton was holding on to a confetti gun, preparing to pop it at any moment as he counted down.

Papyrus and I leaned in closer to each other, ready for action! My heart was ticking like a time bomb in my chest, and my mouth was as dry as a scorching desert. I could feel my tongue sticking on the roof of my mouth, along with a lump forming in my throat.

"Get set…."

We moved in closer to each other, to the point where I was nearly stepping on his boots.

"START NUZZLING!"

 _ **POP!**_

Papyrus and I started to nuzzle each other fervently, but affectionately. I found myself beginning to feel woozy, being so close to the skeleton's face, feeling the warmth of his ivory cheeks. He did not have a nose to nuzzle, so his nose hole was the only option. He was a little faster than I was, but I tried my best to keep up with his speed.

"C'mon Alphys! Keep going! We won't lose this year!"

"U-Undye, I-I don't think I can k-keep up with y-you…"

It seemed that Undyne and Alphys were having a difficult time. Undyne's voice sounded strained, while Alphys sounded a little anxious.

"NGAHHH! WE CAN DO THIS TOGETHER ALPHYS! DON'T GIVE UP ON ME YET! NUZZLE FASTER!"

"O-okay! I-I'll give it my all for you!"

"FASTER ALPHYS! FASTER!"

"A-ah! Undyne!"

"NGAHHHHHHHH!"

"AHHHHHHHHHHH!"

 _ **BOINK!**_

Though I was not focused on the audience, their gasps and "oohs" made me think they were flinching or wincing. That did not sound like a good noise…

"OOOOOH, that's gotta hurt! This is a nose nuzzling competition; not a head butting competition! How unfortunate, looks like couple number three is out!"

"NOOOOOO! ALPHYS! DON'T DIE ON ME! IT CAN'T END LIKE THIS!"

I could hear a long, drawn out moan from Alphys.

"DAMNIT, HOW COULD WE LOSE AGAIN?! UGRHHHH!"

Undyne emitted what I could only describe as angry fish sounds. It looked like Undyne and Alphys were not able to continue. One couple down, five more couples to go.

Papyrus and I were still going on strong, though I felt myself growing tired. It was not the most comfortable experience nuzzling a nose hole, after all. While we continued, I heard Papyrus purring through his teeth, just like a kitten, only ten times sweeter than that. His purring made my face tingle and warm up. Deep inside, I wanted to squeal, but I had to keep myself focused. It was just so endearing, that I could not help but nuzzle him even more. As I nuzzled the skeleton more, his purring became louder, beckoning me to continue.

"N-NYEH! T-THAT'S IT MY LOVELY HUMAN! PLEASE KEEP GOING!"

"Oh my, look at couple number six go! Their passion for each other is unrelenting, just like their nuzzling! Better up your game nuzzling champions!"

"We won't lose to them, right my hotdog?"

"(No, our love can't be beaten!)"

There was more cheering from the audience as the tension started to grow. My knees were beginning to wobble, partially from anxiety, partially from being so close to Papyrus's face, to the point where we could kiss. Part of me wanted this competition to end already, but at the same time, I found myself wanting to stay like this with the skeleton forever.

"A-ah, Papyrus!"

"DON'T GIVE UP! YOU CAN DO IT, MY DEAREST HUMAN! I BELIEVE IN YOU!"

We continued to nuzzle as Mettaton began announcing other couples that dropped out of the competition. After what had felt like for eternity, there was only one more couple left for us to out nuzzle: Dogamy and Dogaressa, the champions. Papyrus and I were very close to winning; I could not believe it! The anticipation was making my stomach do acrobatic flips, but there was no way I could give up now.

"Come on, my dear puppy!"

"(Let's finish them off!)"

Papyrus's continued nuzzling as strongly as before, and though my neck was beginning to cramp, I gave it my all, not stopping for even a second.

"Couple number one and six show no signs of stopping! This is becoming a close match, folks! Oh, I wonder who will be the winners this year?"

The crowd applauded, shouting out our names, filling us with determination. We kept nuzzling, faster and faster, to the point where the friction between our faces could almost produce a fire. The champions were beginning to whimper, trying not to give up, but it seemed that their championship days were over. After about an hour more of nuzzling, the champions had finally lost their will.

"Ohhh, the champions could not keep up with the new couple! Congratulations couple number six; the new nuzzling champions!" Mettaton applauded us, along with the rest of the crowd, who were practically bouncing up and down, screaming madly.

Papyrus and I broke away from our nuzzling, meeting eye-to-eye socket, blush forming on both our faces. His face was as orange as the sun, and his smile was wider than I had ever seen it before. There was no way for me to explain how that was even possible, but seeing him that happy made my heart want to fly out of my chest.

"W-WOWIE! THAT WAS AMAZING! WE SHOULD BE CLOSE LIKE THIS MORE OFTEN!" Papyrus cooed at me, stroking my cheek gently with his glove. "WOULDN'T YOU AGREE, MY VERY SPECIAL HUMAN FRIEND (AUDIBLE WINK)?!" I had no idea where he learned how to be this smooth, but the way he winked at me…I found myself barely able to stand anymore.

"M-mh!" Was the only response that managed to escape my firmly shut lips. My face must had been turning redder than marinara sauce. I tried to avoid Papyrus's gaze, but he cupped his hands on my cheeks, turned my face, then leaned down to nuzzle me more, purring softly. His rib cage was rattling, producing a sound very similar to a xylophone.

"We…lost?! How could we lose!?" Dogamy and Dogaressa were staring into each other's eyes, holding on to each other's paws. The two love dogs were not taking their loss very well at all.

"(Could it be…that our love wasn't strong enough!)" Dogaressa howled while crying into a handkerchief.

"Don't say that! Our love for each other will always be strong!" Dogamy's gaze on his mate was intense, but full of unconditional love.

"(Oh, my Dogamy!)"

"Dogaressa!"

The two embrace, nuzzling each other as they did so. The crowed erupted into "awws" as they witnessed the heartwarming scene; even Mettaton was touched.

"How romantic! Despite their failure, couple number one still love each other deeply! Could I get an applause for them?"

Mettaton and the crowd clapped, cheering for the former champions as they left the area. They were unable to beat us, but that did not matter. Their love for each other was what mattered in the very end. I looked up at Papyrus, smiling at him. He smiled back, his eye sockets sparking orange. I hoped that we were able to be just as close to each other like Dogamy and Dogaressa one day.

"Couple number six, come on to the stage and claim your prize!"

Papyrus lifted me off the ground, carrying me like a prince holding on to his princess. He dashed on to the stage, flashing the audience a wide smile as they threw roses at him. Everyone hollered when he managed to catch one in his mouth, and began throwing…spaghetti roses. Mettaton handed the trophy to me with his leg, balancing it with his toe carefully. I took it, hugging it against my chest, still unable to grasp reality. We won…I could not believe it!

"And that concludes the annual nose nuzzling competition with your beloved host, Mettaton! Stay beautiful, darlings!"

The crowd cheered the loudest they ever had during the competition as Papyrus exited the stage, with me still in his arms. Papyrus was exuberant, skipping with each step he took, and I was quite ecstatic myself. Though my nose hurt, the profound sense of victory distracted me from it.

From a distance away, we saw Sans with Undyne, an unconscious Alphys in the latter's arms. Undyne still seemed to be a little angry about her loss, no, scratch that, she was fuming. She did not like losing competitions, especially if she lost to Papyrus. Those two seemed to have a friendly rivalry with each other, and though Undyne would almost always beat Papyrus, she was a sore loser when she did lose. Papyrus skipped over to them excitedly, calling out to Sans.

"SANS! SANS! I'M SO HAPPY! MY SPECIAL HUMAN AND I WON THE NOSE NUZZLING COMPETITION!"

"heh, good job out there, love bones." Sans winked, giving us a thumbs up.

"You nerds might have beaten us this year, but I'm bringing my A GAME next year. Be prepared for my TRUE WARRIOR SPIRIT!" Undyne yelled, revealing the dagger-like rows of teeth in her mouth.

"NYEH HEH HEH, TRY ALL YOU MIGHT UNDYNE, BUT MY SPECIAL HUMAN AND I WILL WIN EVERY YEAR! WE CANNOT BE DEFEATED!" Papyrus bragged, taking a moment to affectionately skeleton kiss me on the head.

"Ah yeah?! We'll see about that! How did you even GET IN this competition!? You don't even have a freaking NOSE for crying out loud!"

These two and their little spats never failed to make me laugh. They were always trying to best each other at everything, from cooking without burning the house down to jumping through windows. It was quite amusing to watch them train as well, even though neither of them needed to due to the Royal Guard not existing anymore. Alphys and I would always cheer for our significant others from a few inches away.

"THE GREAT PAPYRUS IS A SKELETON WITH MANY SURPRISES, UNDYNE! THERE ARE NO LIMITS TO WHAT I CAN DO! IF YOU WANT TO BEAT US, THEN YOU MUST START PRACTICING NOW FOR NEXT YEAR, RIGHT MY VERY SPECIAL HUMAN?!"

Papyrus started giving me skeleton kisses again, making me giggle uncontrollably. For some reason, his teeth made me feel ticklish. He joined in with my laughter, "nyeh heh heh" ing as he continued to pile on the smooches.

"WOULD YOU GUYS GET A ROOM ALREADY!" Undyne yelled, her hoarse voice attracting the attention of other monsters around us. Papyrus and I were completely immersed in each other, that nothing else seemed to matter at that moment. If we continued on this way, then we would become just like Dogamy and Dogaressa.

I was looking forward to next year's nose nuzzling competition.


	13. Hopes and Dreams

Whew! I'm so sorry for the long wait! I've been drowning in college work, and I've also been working on an Undertale dating sim!  
Well, Chapter 13 is finally here, and it's full of delicious fluff! :D Hopefully the writing is okay because I haven't been writing much lately. ;w;

A lot is going to be happening the next chapters! Here are some major things that will take place in the story:

**WARNING: DON'T READ THIS IF YOU HAVEN'T READ UP TO CHAPTER 12! THESE ARE MASSIVE SPOILERS!**

-The season is about to shift into Spring. A lot will be happening in the story then, because the Reader will be in their new home. Also, there will be a lot of fluff-filled dates between Reader and Papyrus. 3  
-More of Reader's past will be exposed.  
-There will be a lot more drama and tears.  
-More characters will be introduced, including the mysterious man in black.  
-The other human souls will be introduced.  
-Possible trigger warning: There may be a chapter or more where the Reader gets a wave of panic attacks. This is a reader fic with a reader who suffers from social anxiety and possibly a generalized anxiety disorder as well.  
-Undyne will propose to Alphys, and there will be a big wedding!  
-Papyrus's and Reader's relationship will gradually reach milestones. I'm also going to continue interrupting their attempts to kiss because why not?  
-Well what about Chara and Flowey? Flowey's role in the story will be more elaborated on, and Chara's plans will also become more clear.

I hope you all look forward to what I have planned! ^_^ Thank you for your support!

Oh yeah, this chapter has some extra fluff with Sans. Can't keep the small skeleton man out!

...

We paced down the aisles of the bustling Monster Mart, trying to avoid bumping into monsters as we did so. It was evening on a Sunday, so it was no surprise that the market place would be crowded. Being in a noisy, packed place would normally pump my adrenaline into overdrive, but with my two skeletons by my side, I felt like I could go anywhere. Their silly antics made me laugh when I began feeling anxious, and their endless support brought me ease.

There was one thing plaguing my mind as I strolled the carriage throughout the aisles, hastily looking for the ingredients for my recipe. The months had flown by, and it was not going to be long before I could finally move out the skeletons' home. Though I was excited to move into a new apartment, getting used to my old life was going to be a challenge. My stress was making my head feel heavy, to the point where my neck was beginning to cramp.

(It's okay, just try to stay calm.)

I tried to remind myself, taking deep breathes to keep my anxiety from taking over. With each inhale, I envisioned my anxiety escaping my mouth like dark fog, leaving with each exhale. This technique helped me feel much better, but my head was still feeling heavy. Actually, it started becoming heavier as I continued forward. Assuming it was just a tension headache, I ignored it and scanned the different array of meats in the cold case. I picked up a pack of hot dogs that had a cute illustration of a frank with little dog ears.

"Wow, magic sure is amazing! How do monsters even replicate human ingredients? This looks just like real meat!" I said, analyzing that pack like I was looking at an alien specimen.

Without looking at them, I heard Papyrus and Sans giggling, making me wrinkle my brows.

"What's so funny?" I asked, shifting my gaze from the hotdogs to the skeletons behind me.

Sans pointed his index finger at the ceiling. "hey, [protag] updogg,"

"Huh? What're you saying?" I was beginning to wonder if that Pomeranian was somehow defying the laws of gravity.

"it's updogg," He pointed at the ceiling again, the perpetual smile on his face widening.

"What is updogg?!"

Sans chuckled at me, pointing at the hotdogs, then at my head. I suddenly realized what he was getting at, and recalled the time they pulled this prank on me before. There were thirty hotdogs on top of my head, most likely stacked like hardwood blocks just like last time.

"Aw, doggone it you guys!" I said, crossing my arms in a playfully angry manner. I began to laugh at my own joke, and to my surprise, my pun-hating boney boyfriend joined in.

"WOWIE, MY VERY SPECIAL HUMAN! YOU'VE BEEN WALKING AROUND WITH THOSE ON YOUR HEAD THE WHOLE TIME! I'M IMPRESSED BY YOUR SHEER STRENGTH!" Papyrus genuinely complimented me, causing my stomach to tingle.

With a burst of confidence, I could not help but show off my balancing skills. I lifted up one of my legs, holding my arms out to keep myself balanced. To my surprise, none of the hotdogs fell from my head, which felt oddly satisfying. Papyrus and Sans found this feat impressive, and began cheering me on.

"whoa kid, your noggin is pretty good at balancing those dogs." Sans said, casually clapping his hands.

"WHY, OF COURSE SANS! MY HUMAN IS THE BEST AT EVERYTHING, JUST LIKE I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS!" Papyrus struck his prideful, superhero-esque pose. For once, he put me on the same level as him. I could feel my face turning redder and redder by the second, but I did not allow this to ruin my concentration.

"heh, well two can play at that game." Sans took out a random hotdog from his jacket pocket and stacked it on his head. "paps, stack 'em on me."

"OH, ARE YOU GUYS GOING TO HAVE A HOT DOG HEAD STACKING CONTEST!?"

"I guess we are. Bring it on, comedian!"

"GOODIE! THIS SEEMS LIKE A LOT OF FUN! I WANT TO JOIN TOO!"

Papyrus proceeded to stack hot dogs onto Sans's head, until he had the same amount as me. Afterward, he began stacking an equal amount on his own noggin. Before we knew it, a whole crowd of monsters were watching the spectacle, cheering for the three of us. One of the dog monsters in the crowd began stretching their neck to reach the height of our head dogs. I knew that this must had looked ridiculous, but I was too distracted by the brothers to care.

"N-NYEH!" Papryus somehow managed to lose his footing and began falling down on me. The crowd gasped as he knocked me and Sans down to the tile floor, though he managed to not injury us. The hotdogs that were on our heads fell down like rain on to us. We looked at each other, smirks spreading across our faces, before bursting out into laughter with the crowd.

...

(Aha, that should be the right flame level.)

I took the cardboard box of lasagna noodles and emptied into into the boiling water. It felt strange not cooking with my skeleton assistant with me, but this was for a special occasion. As I went to open the fridge, I felt staring down my back. When I turned toward the entry way, I could see two pairs of sockets peering at me.

"Ah ah ah, not today you two! This is supposed to be a surprise!" I shook my finger like how a mother would to their disobeying child.

"AWW, B-BUT I WANT TO SEE!" Papyrus's somehow managed to bat his eye sockets at me.

"yeah, what're ya making?"

As difficult as it was, I refused to back down to their begging, so I kept myself stern.

"It's a secret! Now be good verteboys and let the chef do their magic!" I said, shooing them away gently before turning around to continue my culinary masterpiece. Papyrus let out an over exaggerated sigh before finally admitting defeat.

"OH, ALRIGHT…COME ALONG SANS!"

There was no response from Sans.

"SANS?! WHERE DID YOU GO?!"

I heard Papyrus's boots shuffling against the carpet.

"(SIGH)…WELL, I GUESS I'LL JUST DO SOME PUZZLES…"

It was strangely silent for a few minutes…a little too silent. In the skeleton brothers' house, it was almost never silent…unles-

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

"NYEEEEEE-AHHHH-HAH!"

The skeleton inside me nearly jumped out of my mouth upon hearing what sounded like a bunch of people falling off a cliff. I nearly dropped the slotted spoon, but caught it just in time before it hit the kitchen floor. The whole living room and kitchen vibrated as a large object, or most likely Papyrus's body, dropped to the floor.

"SSSAAAAAAAAANNNNNNSSS!" Papyrus's annoyed voice throughout the room. "OH MY GOD, WHAT AM I GOING TO DO WITH MY IMMATURE BROTHER OF MINE?!"

I had to muffle my laughter with my shirt so Papyrus would not hear me. Tears were already beginning to form in my eyes. The cheeky comedian struck once again, and as per usual, Papyrus was the butt of the joke.

"NYEH, SERIOUSLY?! RUBBER CHICKENS?! WHY?! JUST WHY?!"

There was a brief silence, except for my persistent laughter. I loved these silly skeleton monsters.

After many hours of sweaty, tiresome labor, the special dinner I had worked diligently on was finished. With my piping bag, I carefully finish decorating the heart shaped cake, piping pink frosting on all corners. When I was done, I placed my hands on my hips, smiling with immense satisfaction at my beautiful creation. I could not wait to see their reactions to my gift to them.

"Okay guys,"-I turned around-"Dinner's rea-"

My mouth instantly dropped as the second to last letter of my word drawled out into one long "d" sound. In the doorway were two skeletons, dressed up to the nines. They wore attire that complimented each other; Papyrus wore a crimson colored suit while his shorter brother wore a deep sea colored suit. Sans even had his shirt tucked in and his tie done nicely, probably due to Papyrus's assistance. It was the first time I had ever seen Sans look quite…handsome to be honest. Was it strange to think that about two skeletons? I was beginning to fear for my own mental health for a second.

"heh, what's the matter [protag]? don't you find us…jaw dropping?" Sans gave me his signature wink.

"SINCE YOU WERE DOING A SURPRISE FOR US, WE THOUGHT TO HAVE OUR OWN SURPRISE FOR YOU!"

The two skeletons were blushing; Papyrus tangerine and Sans a light dusting of cyan. I felt my face beginning to boil, and it was not due to the kitchen heat anymore. My attempt to utter any kind of word only turned into a long "uhhhhh" as I fanned myself, in a daze.

"looks like the kitchen just got twice as hot, am I right?"Both Sans and Papyrus audibly winked at me simultaneously, sending what felt like two Cupid arrows piercing through my chest, nearly knocking me out. Like a tea kettle, I felt my temperature rise from my feet all the way to my head, making me feel dizzy.

"you feeling okay, kiddo?" Sans asked, snapping me out of my daze.

"A-ah!"-I took a moment to clear my throat-"Y-Yes! Um…have a seat you two."

The two smiled at me, then made their way to the table I took most of my time decorating. When they were seated, I took each of their plates and cut into the lasagna with a plastic spatula. They looked at me with wide grins and eyes sparkling with excitement. The smell began to tease their metaphorical taste buds, as colored, ectoplasm drool began leaking from the corner of their mouths. I served Papyrus first, whose eyes lite up upon taking a long whiff.

"AH, IT SMELLS HEAVENLY! WHAT'S THIS?" Papyrus asked, eagerly picking up a fork.

"It's hotdog lasagna!"-I placed San's plate in front of him and picked up a ketchup bottle.-" I combined the things you two liked and made this. I personally call it the skelebro special!"

"i'm liking the sound of that, [protag]." Sans smiled as I squirted an S on his lasagna.

I took sparkling water from the fridge and poured it in each skeleton's glass before going to prepare my own meal. I was famished after spending almost 3 hours of cooking in the hot kitchen, so I took a fairly large portion for myself. To my surprise, the brothers have not touched their food yet, even though their sockets were fixated on their plates. I smiled, thinking they were gentlemen for waiting for me.

"ALLOW ME, MY VERY SPECIAL HUMAN!" Papyrus swiftly raised from his seat, going up to my chair and pulling it out.

"THERE YOU ARE! HAVE A SEAT, MY LOVE!" He gestured toward the chair for me to sit down, and I did, giving him a sheepish smile. Papyrus nearly tripped on his own two feet as he made his way back to his own seat, scotching himself in.

"Okay guys! Dig in!" I clasped my hands together in anticipation, but that soon melted when I noticed the skeletons exchanging glances with one another.

"Um…is something wrong?" I asked, looking at my piece of lasagna to make sure it was alright.

(There could not possibly be hair in it, could it? No, I wore a bandana just to make extra sure nothing fell into the meal.)

"paps and i were thinking,"-Sans exchanged glances with Papyrus again, who stifled a giggle.- "since you made it, we'd like for you to try it first." He looked back at me.

"Uhh, okay. If that makes you two happy…" I did not understand why they were acting the way they were, but complied with their wishes. With my fork, I cut a corner of the lasagna, then took the piece into my mouth, chewing it slowly.

WOOF WOOF!

I stopped chewing, confused, then looked around the room.

(Did I just hear a dog?)

I looked at Papyrus and Sans, who were laughing uncontrollably at my facial expression. Thinking my mind was playing tricks on me, I shrugged, then proceeded to chew the mashed up lasagna piece.

WOOF WOOF!

At that point, I was extremely puzzled as the skeletons continued laughing, their rib cages rattling, producing xylophone sounds.

"G-guys…is that Pomeranian in here again?!" I scanned the floor, yet there were no signs of the fluffy white thief anywhere.

"NYEH HEH HEH, OH MY GOODNESS! Y-YOUR FACE…" Papyrus took a moment to wipe a single orange tear from his left eye socket. "IT'S SO FUNNY AND CUTE!"

Under most circumstances, I would have blushed at Papyrus's compliment, but I was still overwhelmed with confusion. As I chewed, the barking continued each time my teeth mashed the meat. After about a few more minutes, I was hit with a sudden, disturbing realization.

(Wait, is the barking in my mouth?!)

My stomach began to churn as a morbid image entered my mind. No matter how hard I tried to suppress it, the picture of puppies being grinded in some meat machine forced its way through my subconscious. I almost had to pick up a napkin to keep myself from retching on the dinner table.

"Guys? What is this?!" My voice became tense and high as my confusion was replaced with mild panic. The two skeletons were not listening to my question, and only continued laughing loudly. I was beginning to think this was some sick attempt at a joke by Sans. The shorter skeleton was pounding his fist on the table, and was dangerously close to falling out of his chair.

"NYEH HEH, NYEH HEH HEH, SORRY HUMAN! IT'S JUST HILARIOUS SEEING A HUMAN EAT HOTDOGS FOR THE FIRST TIME!" Papyrus began to regain some of his composure, though it did not take long for another laughing attack to strike him.

"W-what?! Are there real monster dogs in this?!" My voice was going up the major scale as I spoke, ending on the highest note. I looked at Papyrus with wide eyes, begging for an answer, desperately hoping for him to say "no" so I would not have to visit the trashcan.

"NO, SILLY! THAT'S JUST THE SOUND THEY MAKE WHEN YOU CHEW THEM!" Papyrus took his fork and cut a piece of the lasagna, then slid the piece off his fork with his teeth.

WOOF WOOF!

Through the corners of his mouth, I heard a dog barking as he chewed. That was when I knew I had been fooled by the magical nature of monster food yet again.

"SEE?!"

The lump in my stomach settled, filling me with relief. I smacked my palm against my face, laughing to myself.

"Haha, wow, that got me good!" My laughter echoed throughout the kitchen along with Papyrus's and Sans's.

"oh my god, my ribs…i can't breathe!" Sans breathlessly said, clutching on to his left side.

Before we knew it, there was a discordant symphony of xylophone sounds, barking, and laughter in the entire kitchen. It sounded like a broken record, but we were all having the time of our lives. I even noticed something unusual happening in the brothers' eye sockets. I have seen their sockets light up before, but this time was different. In both their eye sockets, I could see yellow light, like the sunshine on a spring day. Though I was surrounded by these two everyday, I was still no expert on magical skeletons, but one thing was for certain.

They were happy.

A few hours had passed after I presented dessert, and exhaustion was beginning to take its toil on me. Apparently, I was not the only one who was feeling tired, for Sans had fallen asleep on the table. I was relieved when the last of my dishes were done, placing my final dish back into the cabinet before stretching, cracking my back. A nap was something I desperately needed at the moment, possibly even a massage.

"Hello there, my pretty little human," A familiar voice whispered into my ear gently, causing my whole body to shiver. I felt two boney hands rubbing my shoulders gently, working out the kinks in them. "You must be exhausted after preparing all that for us. Why don't you come on the couch? We could do the things couples do. Nyeh heh heh~!"

(Mayday! Mayday! He's being suave!)

I swore to myself that Papyrus had been learning some secret dating techniques from either Mettaton or Undyne. Wherever he got these behaviors, they worked, and he brought me under his spell all the time.

(Calm down! Calm down! Everything will be fine! Everything will be fine!)

That was what I thought, until the skeleton brushed his teeth against my neck softly, purring as he did so.

(Critical hit right in the heart zone! Dating power reaches maximum level!)

My knees began feeling like jelly as Papyrus wrapped me around his little skeleton finger.  
I tried saying something to him, but only a slew of gibberish spewed out from my mouth. He hushed me by placing his index finger on my mouth.

"Shh, no need to utter any more words. I very well know what you would like (audible wink)."

That was it. I was paralyzed, shaking, and not knowing what to do. Luckily, I did not have to do anything, for the skeleton swept me off my feet into his arms. He took me onto the couch, carefully seating me on his lap, then gave me a nuzzle. He looked at me, his voids sparkling like orange stars in a night sky. It took me a moment to realize that we were face-to-face, so close to kissing one another. The thought made my heart beat so fast, that I almost felt it burst out of my chest like a jack-in-the box. Many times before we were close to kissing, but the moment never happened. I could hear Papyrus audibly swallow, like he had some hotdog stuck in his throat. He was tugging at the collar of his suit as if to take tension off his neck. I still did not understand magical skeleton monster anatomy, though my human instincts told me something was in the air. Pheromones? That was not too far from a possibility. I had seen skeletons weep, sweat, eat, use ectoplasm to form tongues, drool, sleep, and much more. They also can have families, if that skeleton man in black counted.

Papyrus stared deeply into my eyes, as if he was yearning for me, though not at all in a lustful manner. It was an innocent yearning, full of curiosity and wonder. He had never dated anyone before, never mind a human. Though he was not hesitant to cuddle, hug, and smother me with skeleton kisses on the forehead or cheek, the first kiss was a completely different territory for him. I saw him canting his head to one side, silently asking me the question that had been on both our minds: to kiss, or not to kiss? It was not an overly complex question, but there was a heaviness behind it.

In moments like these, I expected Papyrus to pull out his dating guide. To my surprise, he slowly and oh so gingerly leaned in closer to me…

"sup guys. how's it going?"

Just as always, Sans appeared at the most inconvenient time, disturbing our attempt to kiss for the second time. Papyrus instantly clutched on to me, like he was clutching a teddy bear while watching a horror film, then scowled at his older brother.

"OH MY GOD, SANS! STOP DISTURBING OUR COUPLEY MOMENTS!" Papyrus angrily lectured his brother, who only shrugged nonchalantly in response. What the small skeleton said next caught me completely off guard.

"but bro, i was technically in on the date. doesn't that mean i get to join too?"

"HMM, I SUPPOSE IT'S ONLY FAIR…" Papyrus thought, stroking his chin. "OH, ALRIGHT! WE CAN SHARE MY HUMAN FOR TONIGHT…" Sans joined us on the couch, scotching quite close to both me and Papyrus.

"B-BUT JUST THIS ONCE!" Papyrus put me in the middle of the couch so Sans could have access to me, but was first to wrap his arms around me. I thought I heard a hint of jealousy in his voice, something I would never expect from him.

(Wait a minute…I'm going to cuddle with two skeletons!?)

Apparently this was happening, since I felt Sans wrapping his arms around me as well. I was not complaining about the situation, though it surprised me that Sans would want to join in on the cuddling session. It was pleasant having two, skeletons emanating warm magic close to me. Their warmth slowly lulled me to sleep, as my eyes closed out the world like shutters. As my eyes closed completely, I felt some things brushing against both my cheeks.

….

"WAKE UP! WAKE UP!"

Someone was violently shaking me, rousing me right out of my deepest sleep. Once it looked like I was awake, the shaking stopped. I grumbled to myself, rubbing my eyes to take away the sand, and saw the two skeletons dressed back in their usual clothing.

"Huh? What is it guys?" I allowed an uncovered yawn escape my lips.

"SANS AND I HAVE A SPECIAL PLACE TO SHOW YOU!" Papyrus squealed, bouncing up and down.

"Yeah kid, come on. We think you'll like it."

I looked at the bone clock above the television, and was shocked to realize that it had already been 8:00pm. My homework was due on Tuesday, and I had not even started on it yet!

"Guys, it's 8:00pm. I need to do homework." I said, disappointing the eager Papyrus. As much as I wanted to see what they had to show me, responsibilities always came first. Failing a college course would not be good for my GPA after all.

"BUT HUMAN! IT'S VITAL THAT WE SHOW YOU TONIGHT!" Papyrus whined, his bottom jaw quivering like he was about to start crying.

"it'll only take a short time. we won't keep you for any longer. you've been working your tail bone off. don't you think you need some time for yourself?" Sans extended his hand out to me to help me off the couch, which I accepted.

"Yeah, you're right. I do have tomorrow." With the assistance of Sans, I slowly rose myself from the couch, careful not to give myself a head rush. I honestly did not want to do homework today anyway. It was Valentine's Day, after all, and I wanted to spend the whole day worry free with my two skeletons.

"THAT'S THE SPIRIT, MY VERY SPECIAL HUMAN!" Papyrus was back to his chipper self again. He held on to both my coat and scarf, helping me put on each.

"HERE! LET ME HELP YOU PUT ON YOUR COAT AND SCARF!" He said, wrapping the scarf around my neck before giving me a little pat to the head. "WE DON'T WANT YOU GETTING SICK!"

"SANS! TAKE US TO THE PLACE!" Papyrus commanded his brother. That was when I knew we were going to take a shortcut. My stomach had already begun to turn at the thought of teleportation.

"Gotcha bro. Hang on tight, kid!" Sans clutched on to both my hand and Papyrus's, and the room began warping and melting before breaking away into particles, revealing a different scenery. Before I could observe the room around me, I collapsed, but Papyrus caught me.

"MY DEAREST HUMAN?! ARE YOU ALRIGHT?!" He gazed at me, worry in his eye sockets.

"Yeah, I'm good. Hehe, guess I'm still not used to 'shortcuts'." I responded with a small laugh, holding on to Papyrus to keep myself stable. Eventually, the ground did not feel like it was breaking away under my feet, and my eyes adjusted to the view around me. My eyes widened when I saw the stunning scenery before me. It looked like we were in some mystical cavern, illuminated only by the teal rivers and flowers. I could feel rain from above falling with a pitter- patter on the earth, wetting my skin, which felt refreshing after working in the hot kitchen. As I breathed, I could smell the unique scent of wet earth and flora. I knew this place back when I was child, and remembered how melancholy hung thick in the air. Now that the monster had been freed, that melancholy was replaced with hope.

"WELCOME TO THE WATERFALL, ALSO KNOWN AS THE WISHING PLACE!" Papyrus broke the silence with his booming voice.

"MONSTERS USED TO COME HERE TO WISH UPON THE SPARKLES ON THE CEILING! THEY WERE THE CLOSEST THINGS TO REAL STARS WE HAD, BUT THEY WORKED!" He pointed at the sparkles on the ceiling that glittered just like real stars. Deep inside my memory, I remembered observing these "stars", back when I first fell down to the underground. Briefly, I turned into that child, remembering the time I sat near the glowing mushrooms, gazing at the sparkles on the ceiling.

Suddenly, a sharp pain shot up my spine all the way to the very top of my head. Without thinking, I clutched my head, clenching my teeth to distract from the sensation. I shook it off before Papyrus turned his head towards me, but judging by the squeeze to my left hand, Sans noticed. Our hands broke away when Papyrus pulled me toward the field of blue flowers. The flowers were repeating snippets of conversations that were mostly incomprehensible due to white noise. However, one of the flowers spoke to me, clearer than all the rest. It was still covered by white noise, but I was able to make out most of the words.

"Please…stop!"

"I'm get…ting tired…"

"Some…body help…"

"Please…"

"I don't…want to…urt anyone…"

There was a small child's voice speaking from the flower, it was unmistakable. I began to feel very uneasy, and found myself wanting to leave. The mystical atmosphere suddenly began to feel eerie and tense.

"IS…SOMETHING WRONG HUMAN?! YOU'RE LOOKING WHITE AS A GHOST!" I turned my head toward Papyrus, noticing that he looked a little worried about me. Something standing next to Papyrus diverted my attention from his face. I gulped, as I noticed what appeared to be a faint figure that looked like a melting blob staring back at me. My instinctive reaction was to freeze up and curl my shoulders in to make myself seem smaller. Though the figure was faint and the features were difficult to make out, I could see its white face and a long, Glasgow smile spread across it. I could also see its two void eye sockets staring at me, though I could not make out the phantom's intentions. I blanked out, not knowing whether to scream or run away.

Papyrus waved a red glove in my face, bringing me back into focus.

"ARE YOU FEELING SLEEPY?!" Papyrus gently brushed my cheek with his thumb, making me blush slightly.

"No, I'm fine Papy! I'm just…admiring the scenery!" I lied, but it was the only thing I could do. How could I tell them that I saw a figure? They would probably consider me mad if I told the truth. Speaking of the figure, when I looked to see it again, it vanished like it was never there to begin with. I blamed it on sleep deprivation and overworking myself with college and cooking.

"ALRIGHT THEN! IF YOU SAY SO!"

There was an awkward silence between us, with only the sound of white noise and rain filling in for our lack of conversation. I looked at the muddy ground, shuffling my boots to take the edge off my nerves. I did not know how to keep conversations going, so when things became silent, I just let the conversation go which ever direction.

"UMMM…HUMAN?!"

I turned to Papyrus again, nodding my head.

"DO...YOU HAVE ANY WISHES YOU WOULD LIKE TO SAY?!"

"W-Wishes?"

Wishes…something that I lost belief in many years ago. I wished for many things in the past: to be a normal, functional human being in society, to see my biological mother again, to not have anxiety, to not feel so worthless about myself…but these things never came true. In fact, I was convinced that no matter how much determination I had, nothing would ever come true. The optimistic child I was a long time ago hardened into a bitter, pessimistic adult. Dreams were for children, I tried to convince myself, but something inside me believed the opposite.

"YES MY SWEETEST HUMAN! IT'S A MONSTER TRADITION FOR COUPLES TO WHISPER THEIR WISHES INTO ECHO FLOWERS TOGETHER!" Papyrus beamed at me, his eye sockets smiling as he took my hands. The positive energy that came off him was unconditional and boundless. If there was an embodiment of hope and dreams, then Papyrus suited it perfectly. I nodded my head silently, concealing the inner feelings and thoughts deep within me. Papyrus's hands slowly left mine, leaving me with an empty feeling. He then leaned in on the closest echo flower in front of him.

"SO…ARE YOU READY? WE'LL DO IT AT THE SAME TIME!" He leaned in closer to the echo flower.

"Oh, s-sure!" I leaned in to the nearest flower that happened to be next to Papyrus's.

We both closed our eyes, whispering our wish into our flower. After wishing into our flowers, they both echoed back our voices. I was shocked and also delighted when Papyrus's flower echoed back his wish. It so happened that his wish was the exact same as mine! I instantly covered my hands with my face.

"Human…" Papyrus whispered to me, pulling my wrists to separate my face from my hands. I shyly looked at him, noticing that his eye sockets were teary. He took me into his arms, twirling me around and laughing his signature laugh as he did so. Without watching where he was going, he tripped on a rock, making us both fall to the ground. Papyrus sheepishly looked at me, and I pulled his face close to mine, nuzzling him with my nose on his teeth. The skeleton squealed with delight, then attacked me with tickles and nuzzles.

But wait…what about Sans? Still with Papyrus tickling and nuzzling me all over, I noticed the smaller skeleton sitting at the edge of the teal river. His back turned away from me, throwing small stones into it. Sans had his shoulders slumped and his head down, appearing deep in thought. Now when I thought about it, Papyrus and I were having a fun time together. Poor Sans must have been feeling like a third wheel.

"Hey…why don't all three of us make a wish?" I suggested to Papyrus, who nodded his head energetically at the idea.

"THAT SOUNDS LIKE AN EXCELLENT IDEA, HUMAN!"

"Great!"-I cupped my hands to my face -"Hey Mr. Skulky Bones, come on over here!" I called out to the skeleton, who's head instantly popped up. He looked at us, his large frown turning back into the smile that was only characteristic to Sans only. Getting up, he ambled his way over to us in his lazy manner, then sat next to us on the ground. We must have all been muddy, but with the fun we were having, that was the least of our worries.

Together, hand in hand, we made a wish on the sparkles on the ceiling. I silently whispered my wish, putting all my soul into it.

"What did you wish for, Papyrus?" Both Sans and I looked at Papyrus, expecting his answer.

"I WISHED FOR US ALL TO BE TOGETHER FOREVER AND EVER!" Papyrus hugged us both, Sans with his left arm and me with his right. Sans began laughing, clutching on to his nonexistent stomach. This seemed to make Papyrus a little irritated.

"NYEH! WHAT'S SO FUNNY ABOUT THAT BROTHER!?" Papyrus asked, his skeleton brows furrowing.

"i'm not laughing because it's funny," Sans began, after regaining his composure.

"that's my wish too…"-He smiled, turning to me-"what about you, [protag]?"

"It seems that we all have the same wish." I smiled at the two skeletons, their eyes glistened at me.

"WOWIE! THEN THAT MEANS IT MUST COME TRUE! MAYBE IF WE WISH TOGETHER WITH ALL OUR MIGHT, WE CAN BRING THAT INTO REALITY!" Papyrus pulled us closer to him, hugging us both tightly. "WOULDN'T YOU AGREE, SANS?!"

Without any form of hesitation from the shorter skeleton, Sans nodded his head and gave a genuine smile.

"heh, yeah, I would bro."

I was not sure about the future, or what was in store for me, but I was not afraid. Together, we could form new hopes, new dreams, and new memories with one another. Back before I met Papyrus, the future was looking bleak for me. I had no friends nor anyone to rely on, and many times I was stuck facing my nightmares and worries alone. Ever since we first met, I started to grow into a stronger individual everyday, and this filled me with a new sense of determination.

For maybe around an hour or so, we stood at the Waterfall, talking about each other's dreams and the future. As we spent time together, I felt a presence with us, but the entity did not feel like it was harmful. It was a benevolent being, looking down upon us, and though I could not see the expression it wore, I imagined that it was smiling.


End file.
